A 29 year old conscript spent his army leave on a drug run instead of going home, police in Ubon Ratchathani have said.
Officers from Khemarat Police Station, working with the 12th Army Public Relations Team, arrested the soldier, named as Chokchai, after a high speed chase across two provinces. He was caught in a rice field in Khemarat district with 350 bundles of methamphetamine pills, totalling around 700,000 tablets.
Police Colonel Adun Suramphai, superintendent of Khemarat Police Station, said the soldier belonged to an anti-aircraft artillery unit based in Kiak Kai, Bangkok, and was on approved home leave in Rasi Salai district, Si Sa Ket, when he took on the smuggling job.
The chase began late on August 20 at around 10pm, when a joint police and army patrol team noticed a black Nissan sedan behaving suspiciously on Arun Prasert Road in Khemarat district. When officers signalled the driver to stop, he sped off instead, triggering a pursuit that stretched more than 20 kilometres.
The car eventually lost control on a dirt road in Pathum Ratchawongsa district, Amnat Charoen, and crashed into the roadside. Chokchai then tried to flee on foot under cover of darkness, but officers surrounded the area and detained him shortly afterwards.
A search of the vehicle turned up the 350 bundles of methamphetamine, along with a military backpack and documents identifying the suspect.
During questioning, Chokchai admitted he had been offered 40,000 baht (US$1,140) to collect the drugs from a location along the Mekong River in Khemarat district and deliver them to a contact in Amnat Charoen. He was intercepted before he could complete the delivery.
Police handed Chokchai and the seized drugs to investigating officers for further legal proceedings.
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