Cabbie nabbed with ya ba in city drug sting

Narcotics Suppression police arrested cabbie Sayan Chinsamran, 36, at 8am while he was parking a Toyota, which had the drugs in its hood, in Charoenkrung Soi 91.

Police also raided four three-storey townhouses in the area, two of which were opened as a taxi garage named "Thana Siam Co-op".

The garage had 10 taxis in the front yard while three jet-skis, one Mercedes Benz and a Mini Cooper were inside. All vehicles were seized so police can try to determine if they were bought with drug money.

Police also seized a shotgun and ammunition from a garage worker who claimed a friend had left them with him.

Deputy chief of the Narcotics Suppression Police, Maj Gen Adithep Panjamanont, said his men staked out the four houses for several months following a tip-off by a Good Samaritan.

Early yesterday, Sayan took a ride with another taxi driver identified only as Lek to fetch the Toyota sedan that had been left on Rangsit-Nakhon Nayok Road, Adithep said.

Police who trailed the cab-drivers confronted the men and searched the car. They found two bags full of speed pills in the hood. However, Lek and another man at the garage identified as Sakon Chanchaisilp fled the scene, so police would gather evidence to get warrants for their arrest, he said. The owner of the taxi garage would also be summoned to see if he was involved in drug dealing.

Sayan reportedly told police he merely followed an order from Sakon, the son-in-law of the garage owner, to bring the Toyota back to the garage. He denied any knowledge of drug dealing, the officer said.