Authorities in Champasak Province have arrested five people suspected of methamphetamine trafficking and seized more than 22,000 pills during a crackdown in Sanasomboun district earlier this month.
According to the Champasak Provincial Public Security Office, officers from Bachiengchaleunsouk and Sanasomboun districts raided a suspected drug use and trafficking site in Wang Warn village on 5 May. Three suspects in their twenties were initially detained.
During the operation, authorities confiscated 4,167 methamphetamine pills, ketamine, electronic cigarettes, 2.5 kilograms of kratom leaves (Mitragyna speciosa), 64 bottles of cough syrup, a motorcycle, three mobile phones, and 24 rounds of 9 mm ammunition.
Further investigation led to the arrest of two additional suspects: 50-year-old Noey Keochomphou from Namphao village, Khamkeuth district, Bolikhamsay, and 31-year-old Bounthan Xayyavongsa from Oudomsouk village, Nakai district, Khammouane. Authorities also seized another 18,001 meth pills, two mobile phones, and a pickup truck with Savannakhet registration plates.
Officials said all five suspects remain under investigation while authorities work to identify other members of the alleged trafficking network.
Regional Drug Trafficking Concerns
The arrests in Champasak come amid rising meth trafficking along the Lao-Thai border.
On 26 May, Thai river patrol officers in Mukdahan seized approximately 196 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine hidden in a pickup truck near the Mekong River. Authorities said the drugs were likely smuggled from Laos before being transported deeper into Thailand.
The discovery, just 1.2 kilometers from local district offices and a police station, highlights the bold tactics used by transnational drug networks in the region.
Authorities in both countries have intensified anti-drug operations as methamphetamine trafficking remains a major security concern.
