Two separate arrests yield more than half a million yabaa pills

Two separate arrests yield more than half a million yabaa pills

In two separate cases, police confiscated 520,000 yabaa pills being smuggled into Thailand for sale by drug traffickers.
On March 22, Chiang Mai Provincial Police arrested a gang of Chinese Haw drug traffickers with 20,000 yabaa pills that they had brought to Chiang Mai to sell.

Arying or Jinyoon sae Wang, 43, Somchai or Arhai Saemu, 22 and Somboon Saelee, 36, all residents of Muang Na in Chiang Dao District were arrested after a sting operation was set into motion by Chiang Mai police. The men delivered packets of 20,000 yabaa pills to undercover police after negotiating with them for the sale earlier in the day. Police arrested the men and confiscated the drugs and 2,000,000 baht in cash.

In the second incident, police from the Provincial Police Bureau, Region 5, acting on a tip off, set up a roadblock in Lampang’s Mae Yo District. 500,000 yabaa pills, worth 100 million baht, were found hidden in the back of a pickup truck at the checkpoint on March 23.

Police Commissioner Pol Lt Gen Somkid Boonthanom announced the arrest of Nathakitch Kiartpraisan, 32, a resident of tambon Mae Soi, Chormthong district, Chiang Mai, found with 500,000 ya baa pills packed in 150 plastic bags hidden in a compartment in a specially modified Mitsubishi pickup-truck.

Nathakitch confessed to police that he had been hired by Mr. Ke, surname unknown, was paid 400,000 baht, to deliver the drugs from Chiang Rai to Bangkok.

Region 5 Police Chief Pol Lt Gen Somkid said this appeared to be a new manufacture of high grade yabaa tablets coming from bordering countries.