Police seize 500kg of crystal meth as drug gang abandons car and flees checkpoint

Police seized 500 kilogrammes of crystal meth in a car abandoned by drug gangs in northern Thailand.

Officers were patrolling the border following intelligence about a drug-smuggling operation in Chiang Rai.

Cops were deployed along routes to intercept the incoming drug shipment when they spotted several suspicious vehicles travelling from Mae Sai district at around 6:30 am local time on August 21.

A white sedan believed to be acting as a scout vehicle sped away to avoid a checkpoint.

Police tried to stop a black Mitsubishi Xpander Cross suspected of carrying the drugs but the driver fled before abandoning it near the Wat Thammaprasit temple and fleeing on foot.

Inside, police found 25 sacks containing crystal meth with a total weight of around 1,102lbs (500kg).

The value was estimated at around 100,000 baht per kilogramme, which could soar to around one million baht per kilogramme in the inner parts of the country, police said.

Police also suspected the vehicle had been rented in Wiang Chai district.

A drone was deployed to help search for the suspect while officers scoured the surrounding area on foot for around three hours.

At around 9.30am, they found driver Panupong Sararum, 24, hiding in a ditch inside an orchard around half a mile from where the vehicle had been abandoned.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Kittipoom Kanjina of the Chiang Saen Police Station said the suspect, drugs and vehicle had been handed over to investigators at Chiang Saen Police Station for legal action.

He added: ‘We will expand the investigation to track down accomplices and other relevant individuals for prosecution.'

Thailand has become a notorious hub for drug production and trafficking. In the north of the country, the ‘Golden Triangle' area shares borders with Laos and Myanmar, and has produced large amounts of opium since the 1950s but focus in recent years has shifted to the more profitable methamphetamine.

Officials believe most of the meth is produced in the Shan State of Myanmar before being distributed through neighbouring countries where prices are higher before ending up in the most expensive markets of Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore.

However, cracking down on drug production has been complicated by the influx of crime gangs from China and the Burmese civil war, which has seen the army take over the country - along with control of lucrative drugs chains.