Thai Police Seize 3 Million Meth Pills In Chiang Mai
Chiang Mai’s Pha Muang task force intercepted a drug smuggling convoy, seized 14 backpacks holding nearly three million methamphetamine pills after the suspects abandoned their vehicle and fled toward the Myanmar border. The operation, conducted on October 9‑10, 2026, involved coordinated checkpoints on Highway 1089 and support from multiple security units. The seized drugs and vehicle have been handed over to investigators for further legal action.
On October 10, 2026, Chiang Mai’s Pha Muang task force reported intercepting a drug smuggling convoy. Acting on special intelligence, units including the Chaiyanupat special forces, Border Patrol Police 334, Ranger regiments 3201 and 3209, Mae Ayutthaya police and Mae Ay district officials had established checkpoints on Highway 1089 from Mae Ay to Mae Chan since October 9. At 05:00 hours, the drug suppression unit of Border Patrol Police 334 detected a suspicious pickup truck with a Chiang Mai license plate coming from Mae Chan district in Chiang Rai province, entering Ban Huay Nam Yen village, Moo 4, Tha Ton subdistrict, Mae Ay district. The vehicle did not stop; the driver accelerated, then abandoned the vehicle and fled into the surrounding forest, believed to have crossed into Myanmar. Officers searched the vehicle and discovered 14 altered backpacks containing approximately 2.8 million methamphetamine pills (ya ba). The drugs and the vehicle were transported to the Border Patrol Police 334 camp in Mae Ay for counting and case preparation before being handed over to the Mae Ayutthaya Police Station for prosecution. The report notes that drug smuggling remains persistent along Thailand’s northern border, with numerous crossing points making total interdiction difficult, although security forces continue intensive daily operations.
