SUVARNABHUMI – Pol. Lt. Gen. Phanurat Lakboon, Secretary-General of the Office of the Narcotics Control Board, revealed on Wednesday the arrest of a Chinese national, 29, with 3,000 grammes of heroin at Suvarnabhumi Airport.
The suspect was attempting to smuggle the drugs into Australia before he was arrested by officers from the Airport Interdiction Task Force (AITF), a collaboration between Customs, the Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB), the Airport Security Police (ASP) and the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB).
Pol. Lt. Gen. Phanurat said that on February 22, 2024, ONCB officers stationed in China (Beijing ONCB Beijing) received intelligence about a person suspected of smuggling drugs from Thailand to Australia. The AITF unit investigated the information and found that the suspect was scheduled to travel on February 26, 2024, from Suvarnabhumi Airport to Melbourne, Australia.
As the time of the flight approached, the AITF officers spotted a man who matched the intelligence report and identified themselves as ONCB officers to request a search. During the search, 3,000 grammes of heroin were found, divided into powder form concealed in two baby powder bottles and in stick form hidden in six books, all packed in a suitcase.
The officers arrested the suspect and charged him with “attempting to illicitly export a Type 1 narcotic (heroin) from the Kingdom of Thailand” and “illicitly possessing a Type 1 narcotic (heroin) for the purpose of trafficking and impairing national security” under the Narcotics Act B.E. 2021. The Chinese national will be transferred to the Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB) for further legal action.
Pol. Lt. Gen. Phanurat said that according to ONCB statistics, the AITF has successfully intercepted and seized 85 cases of drug exports to Australia since 1 October 2022 to date, seizing a total of 116.116 kg of crystal methamphetamine and 116.147 kg of heroin.
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