Half-Ton Crystal Meth Haul Seized in Major Cross-Border Drug Bust
Police arrested a driver in Amnat Charoen after seizing 500 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine hidden in fertilizer destined for Nonthaburi and Southern Thailand, with an estimated street value exceeding 1 billion baht.
Amnat Charoen Provincial Police Command has seized over half a ton of crystal methamphetamine hidden in chicken manure fertilizer in a cross-border drug trafficking operation. The driver admitted to planning delivery in Nonthaburi before onward transport to Southern Thailand, with the drugs expected to reach a street value exceeding 1 billion baht at their final destination.
Police arrested Kong Fah Bunsiree, a resident of Chaiyaphum Province, during a roadblock on Chayangkul Road near kilometer 10 of Non Nham Thang Subdistrict, Muang District, Amnat Charoen at 00:15 on September 27. The arrest followed an intelligence tip that a Laotian contact had hired couriers via Line messaging under the alias "Singto" to transport drugs from the border region to buyers in central areas. Police worked undercover with an informant to track the operation, which involved surveying a route from Mukdahan through Loei and Yasothon provinces to Amnat Charoen and into Nonthaburi.
Once the 10-wheel truck was identified in Amnat Charoen, officers intercepted and searched it, recovering 500 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine. Kong Fah initially claimed he was hired by Laotian contacts for 300,000 baht to deliver the drugs to Nonthaburi, with further distribution to the South before export. The seized methamphetamine has a preliminary street value of 120 million baht, though officials expect this to exceed 1 billion baht once it reaches final markets.
