100,000 meth pills seized after gunfight between soldiers, drug dealers

By APD writer Chen Jiabao

BANGKOK, Oct.16 (APD) -- Thai soldiers seized 100,000 pills of methamphetamine after a gunfight with drug traffickers near Thai-Myanmar border, officers said at a press conference on Monday.

According to security officers, the gunfight happened in a border area in northern Thailand's Chiangrai province. The patrolling soldiers found four suspected men carrying two bags and guns walking from the bush after receiving tip-offs.

The suspects were signaled to stop but two of them shot the officers with guns of which types remained unknown. The gunfight last for five minute. The drug smuggle gang fled, leaving one sack on the spot. No injuries were reported.

Officers found 100,000 speed pills inside along with three cell phones. Two motorbikes at the scene were also seized for further investigation.

Thailand has been marred with drug smuggling, as it borders countries like Myanmar, Cambodia and Malaysia, where narcotics are produced and trafficked.

Chiang Rai is a mountainous region bordering Laos and Myanmar, which makes up the Golden Triangle that once provided at least half of the world’s opium supply.

Lots of drugs coming into Thailand from the north pass through Chiang Rai Province on their way south.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)