Drugs crackdown at jails scores some hits

Centre commander Preecha Sirinil said the tablets were found hidden in a truck that transported leftover food out of the prison. The tablets were wrapped in paper at the bottom of trash bins.

The driver of the truck, Suthi Anusorn-pratheep, said he had no idea how the drugs got into the trash bins, as prison guards had ordered him away from his vehicle. While he was in a prison office, the guards said they found the tablets and three mobile phones in the bins.

Suthi, being held by Prachachuen police, said the prison guards normally showed up at the gate at 10 am and drove his truck through four checkpoints, but today he waited another 30 minutes, before being called to enter the office.

Prachachuen police said they were waiting for the Corrections Department's internal investigation involving the guards responsible for the truck entering the jail. But Suthi had to be detained because prohibited items were found on his vehicle, despite his protest of innocence.

Preecha said the search followed tip-offs that came after news of a crackdown on drug dealing within prisons, and drug trafficking carried out by gangs coordinated by dealers in jail.

He said prison guards had found that recently-imprisoned members of drug gangs had concealed mobile handsets up their anus.

He said the crackdown would continue to tackle drug gangs within jails, which is a long-standing problem.

Justice Ministry permanent secretary Charan Phakdithanakul said he had ordered anti-narcotics agents under the ministry's supervision to expand inquiries into prison drug dealing and to compile more evidence against many suspects, who he said had been identified but not arrested due to lack of evidence.

Meanwhile, police arrested a man whom they said was a drug trafficker supplying dealers in Lad Yao remand prison. Nikhom Bunjan and his pregnant wife Arisa Phanthome were arrested after police seized 60,000 amphetamine tablets, 1,500 ecstasy pills and 700 grams of "ice flakes" from their apartment on Ratchadaphisek Soi 3. Police arrested the two and later searched their room after an undercover agent bought 200 "ice flakes" from them. The two implicated the mastermind of their operation as "Tam", a drug dealer now imprisoned at Lad Yao remand prison.

Police are still looking for two others - "Tom" and "Joy" - implicated by Nikhom and Arisa as sub-agents in areas around Phaholyothin Soi 52.

Police were also searching for Ple Bunkaewsri, whom Arisa said was her boyfriend, who allegedly worked as a drug runner.

Arisa has reportedly said she only worked as a drug runner for Nikhom's gang but never used drugs herself. She said her pregnancy helped to minimise attention from police if she was stopped at road checkpoints and searched.

The Nation