Nonthaburi police seize 500kg of meth hidden with gourds

Police in Nonthaburi have seized about 500 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine, known locally as ya ice, which was concealed in cardboard boxes containing bitter melons at a house in Bang Bua Thong district.

The drugs, estimated to be worth around 100 million baht, were found after police and military intelligence officers expanded an investigation into a suspected drug storage network. The operation was reported at 00.15 on 3 September 69 at a property in Pimolrat subdistrict, Bang Bua Thong, Nonthaburi.

Bang Bua Thong police investigator Pol Lt Col Prasopsin Phim Mee Lai received the report that 500kg of Category 1 narcotics had been hidden at the house.

Drugs packed in 56 boxes

Officers said they had traced a suspected man who drove a white Isuzu D-Max pickup with a Carryboy canopy and Bangkok registration plates into the lane where the property is located.

The man was later identified as Thanadet Panyethanakan. Police searched the property and found the suspected methamphetamine in the house's main hall.

The drugs were packed in orange tea bags bearing Chinese lettering, officers said. They had been placed inside 56 cardboard boxes, with bitter melons, mixed in among the packages in an apparent attempt to disguise the consignment.

Mr Thanadet and the seized drugs were taken to Bang Bua Thong Police Station for further legal proceedings.

Police, military intelligence personnel from the Special Warfare Command Operations Centre, and Narcotics Suppression Bureau officers took part in the investigation.

Picture courtesy of Thairath

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4 September 2026

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