SONGKHLA, Aug 4 - Three Malaysian men were arrested at Hat Yai Railway Station in Songkhla on Friday (July 31), on suspicion of trying to smuggle 87kg of syabu (crystal methamphetamine) concealed in three wheeled suitcases and three backpacks.
The Narcotics Control Board's (ONCB) Region 9 Office director Ratchapon Palakul said the arrest was made by the "Tawan Hat Yai" unit in a joint operation with the railway police, the Crime Suppression Division, the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division, the tourist police, the Narcotics Suppression Bureau, and the Region 9 ONCB.
The suspects boarded a train in Bangkok bound for Hat Yai and were intercepted upon arrival at the railway station.
"Initial investigations found that one of the suspects admitted to having been offered RM8,000 each by a syndicate to smuggle the syabu or 'ice' into Malaysia," he said when contacted today.
Ratchapon added that the trio have been charged with the joint charges of possessing and trafficking Category One narcotics for the purpose of distribution, which carries a prison sentence of up to 15 years and a fine of not more than ฿1.5 million (approximately RM183,000), upon conviction.
Investigations are being expedited to identify the mastermind other accomplices in the cross-border drug trafficking syndicate.
