Crime Europe–Thailand Drug Pipeline Smashed in Bangkok Raids

[Georgealbert]

 

Pictures courtesy of SiamNews.

 

Thai authorities have dismantled a sophisticated transnational drug operation run by four Vietnamese nationals, exposing a trafficking pipeline stretching from Europe to Southeast Asia.

 

The suspects were arrested following coordinated raids on a condominium in Ramkhamhaeng and a rented house in Lat Phrao, Bangkok. Officers seized 5.2 kilograms of ketamine, 514 ecstasy tablets, powdered ecstasy and an automatic pill press with multiple logo dies and tablet-making equipment.

 

Parcels from the Netherlands

 

The investigation began on 15 August when Customs officials intercepted parcels from the Netherlands containing ketamine hidden among snack packets. Under a controlled delivery, officers tracked the shipment to a Bangkok condominium, where two Vietnamese men attempted to collect the packages.

 

Their arrests led to a further raid in Lat Phrao, where two more Vietnamese nationals were detained and additional drugs and pill-making machinery were uncovered.

 

Ecstasy Manufacturing Operation

 

According to police, the group intended to combine the ketamine with MDMA to produce ecstasy tablets for distribution across Bangkok’s nightlife venues, with some consignments believed to be trafficked back to Vietnam.

 

Pol Lt Gen Panuwat Lakboon, Secretary-General of the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB), said Vietnamese syndicates had increasingly shifted operations into Thailand following an intensive crackdown at home, where more than three million methamphetamine and ecstasy pills were seized last year.

 

“These networks exploit international postal systems and unoccupied condominium addresses, using false names to receive shipments,” he explained. “Some suspects even present passport photos on their phones to collect parcels without residing at the registered addresses.”

 

Regional Cooperation

 

The arrests followed intelligence exchanged at the 17th Thailand–Vietnam Bilateral Meeting on Drug Control Cooperation, held earlier this month in Hanoi. Officials say the case highlights the growing role of intelligence sharing in tackling cross-border trafficking.

 

Pol Lt Gen Panuwat stressed that Thailand is working closely with partners in Singapore, Vietnam, China, South Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia to disrupt international drug syndicates.

 

“This operation reflects the success of international cooperation,” he said. “We will continue to intensify surveillance and enforcement to prevent Thailand being used as a base or transit hub by foreign drug networks.”

 

Authorities believe the Vietnamese group were capable of producing more than 100,000 pills a day using automated presses, targeting both tourists and local customers across the region.

 

 

  Adapted by Asean Now from SiamNews 2025-08-22