Yesterday’s arrest, for possession of methamphetamine pills (ya bah) and heroin, brings the total number of people arrested transporting drugs via bus onto the island to three in five days.
Police arrested Chaloemsak Matchawet from Takua Thung, Phang Nga at 10:30pm yesterday after he was found in possession of three plastic bags containing 585 ya bah pills stashed in his underwear, and one small bag containing 109 milligrams of heroin in his left shoe.
A team of police officers, led by Lt Ekkarin Rodmanee, under the authority of Gen Surapon Kupkapan, Commander of the Third Naval Area Command, inspected the bus heading into Phuket from Hat Yai on suspicions that illegal substances were being transported on the Phatthalung-registered bus.
Officers asked Chaloemsak to undergo a check in the toilet at Phuket Checkpoint. After asking him to undress, police found a red cloth in the crotch of his underwear containing three small ziplock bags containing the ya bah pills.
Two bags contained 200 pills each, of which 198 were red and marked WY, and two were green, said Tha Chatchai Police.
The third bag contained 185 pills of which two were green.
In Chaloemsak’s left shoe, police discovered a drinking straw containing a off-white powder that was found to be heroin.
Chaloemsak told police that he had bought the drugs from a man named ‘Off’ whose last name he claimed not to know, for a price of B15,000 per 200 pills and that he paid B45,000 in total.
According to Chaloemsak, Off dropped the heroin and ya bah pills beside a road in Jana district, Songhkla, where Chaloemsak picked them up before boarding the bus to Phuket.
Chaloemsak claimed the drugs were for his personal use, said police.
“Tha Chatchai police charged the 24-year-old with illegal possession of Category 1 drugs with intent to sell, which Chaloemsak accepted,” said the police report.
A 21-year-old man was arrested attempting to smuggle 1,564 ya bah onto Phuket last Thursday (Feb 8). The pills were en route to their delivery point – a government housing estate in Srisoonthorn. (See story here.)
Then on Friday (Feb 9), Tha Chatchai police officers arrested a 20-year-old man attempting to smuggle 781 ya bah and 28.4 grams of methamphetamine (ya ice) at the Phuket Checkpoint at around 7.15pm. (See story here.)