Drug dealers from at least six parts of the world are targeting Thai customers, aiming at revellers in Bangkok's night entertainment venues, deputy Customs Department director-general Narin Kalayamitr said yesterday.
He said Iranian pushers usually smuggle in "ice flakes", while Pakistanis are frequently associated with heroin, Filipinos and Africans with cocaine, Indians with ketamines and Nepalese with marijuana.
Narin said more drugs from Iran were expected to be smuggled into Thailand soon, and that police and customs agents were monitoring future drug trafficking by foreign narcotics rackets.
Narin was speaking after customs agents had arrested four Iranian men for allegedly smuggling into Thailand ice flakes, worth Bt6 million in street value, by swallowing and concealing the drug in their stomachs.
The four suspects boarded two different flights arriving at Suvarnabhumi airport on Monday and yesterday morning respectively, when they were arrested by customs agents who claim to have found the drugs in their possession, in both their stomachs and luggage.
Agents said Hurizad Bahram, 26, and Taheri Hamid, 27, who arrived in Thailand on Monday, each had two bags of ice in their bodies, weighing in total 81 grams.
Mohammad Abdi, 27, and Behnam Davapanah, 24, were arrested yesterday morning, after 1.4 kg of ice was found in Behnam's luggage, and Abdi was allegedly trying to swallow a plastic bag containing 250 grams of ice in a toilet.
Narin said customs officials also seized a large number of smuggled goods worth around Bt38 million at border checkpoints around the country. Among the contraband items were an Ipad, computer notebooks, pornographic material and fake cosmetics.
Police in Phuket arrested six Thais, including three women, and seized 17 bags of ice flakes weighing 21.8 grams and 90 amphetamine tablets allegedly in their possession.
Alleged ring leader Somchai Thongthaengyai, 38, was released from prison recently for drug dealing, but agents said he resumed the illicit business buying drugs from Kittichai Praphanphoj, 30, who distributed them for resale to four other suspects.