Crime Romanian Tourist Caught Smuggling 3.5kg of Heroin at Suvarnabhumi Airport

[Georgealbert]

Picture courtesy of Khaosod

 

Customs officers have arrested a 50-year-old Romanian woman who attempted to smuggle more than 3.5 kilograms of heroin out of the country via Suvarnabhumi Airport. The narcotics have an estimated street value of over 1 million baht.

 

The woman was apprehended on 26 July, as she was preparing to board a Vietnam Airlines flight bound for Taiwan via Hanoi. Authorities confirmed that the arrest was the result of an ongoing operation targeting international drug trafficking through Thailand’s borders.

 

Phanthong Loykulnan, spokesperson for the The Customs Department, said the operation involved close cooperation between several agencies, including the department’s Investigation and Suppression Division, the Suvarnabhumi Airport Passenger Inspection Office, the Airport Interdiction Task Force (AITF) and narcotics suppression police.

 

Acting on intelligence reports, officers identified the suspect at the Vietnam Airlines check-in counter. Her luggage was flagged during routine X-ray screening, prompting a detailed search. Inside a black hard-shell suitcase, officers found a backpack and bedding set concealing packets of white powder.

 

Field testing using ONCB051 Marquis reagent, confirmed the substance was heroin when it turned purple upon chemical reaction. The total weight of the drugs was confirmed at 3.56 kilograms.

 

The suspect has been charged under Thailand’s Customs Act of 2017 for attempting to export Category 1 narcotics (heroin) and for possession of a controlled substance.

 

Authorities emphasised that the case underscores Thailand’s dual role as both a target and transit point for international drug networks. Suvarnabhumi Airport continues to serve as a crucial checkpoint in the country’s fight against drug smuggling.

 

According to Customs Department figures, between 1 October 2024 and 24 July 2025, officials have intercepted narcotics including crystal methamphetamine (ice), heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine pills in 187 separate cases. The total estimated value of the seizures exceeds 1.157 billion baht.

 

The woman remains in custody pending further legal proceedings.

 

 

  Adapted by Asean Now from Khaosod 2025-07-27

 

 

 

[sammieuk1]

Goodnight and see you in 25 years or so🤔

[thesetat]

Seems like Thailand has got a lot more snitches now telling them when to expect drugs to pass through their checkpoints. I do not know if the drug dealers in Thailand are as smart as the ones from Bolivia and Columbia. They use the tactic of giving the officials details about someone smuggling to keep the police busy arresting that person and all the while, 5 other smugglers pass through the checkpoints at that time. Lose one shipment and keep 5. This keeps the police happy and the drug dealers. 

I really do not think the main dealers are losing so many shipments as they are sending out. 

[KhunBENQ]

Should have put him and the stuff to a flight to Singapore.

[novacova]

2 hours ago, Georgealbert said:

Customs officers have arrested a 50-year-old Romanian woman who attempted to smuggle more than 3.5 kilograms of heroin out of the country

Another daredevil. Wonder how many make it through…

[chuang]

I didn't know someone asked me to carry for him..

I am not a drug trafficker..