CHIANG RAI – Soldiers from the Pha Muang Task Force intercepted a massive shipment of methamphetamine pills after a brief armed clash with traffickers along the Thai-Myanmar border in Mae Sai district on Sunday. The operation, carried out deep inside forest terrain near Ban Pha Mee, resulted in the seizure of approximately 2,200,000 meth pills.
Authorities said the mission followed intelligence reports indicating that a major drug trafficking network planned to smuggle large quantities of narcotics from a neighbouring country into Thailand. The route was expected to pass through the rugged border region of Mae Sai before the drugs were moved further inland by couriers.
Upon receiving the information, commanders of the Pha Muang Task Force instructed the Thap Chao Tak Special Task Force and other agencies to establish a coordinated interception plan. Soldiers were deployed to secure strategic paths used by smugglers.
At around 7 p.m. on Saturday, soldiers on border patrol along the Thai-Myanmar line in Wiang Phang Kham subdistrict spotted a group of 10 to 12 individuals moving cautiously through the forest. Each suspect carried a modified sack designed as a backpack, a common method used by traffickers transporting large quantities of narcotics on foot.
The soldiers announced themselves and attempted to conduct a search. Almost immediately, the group opened fire with weapons of unknown type and calibre, prompting a five-minute exchange of gunfire. The traffickers then used the darkness and their familiarity with the terrain to escape, abandoning their backpacks as they fled toward the Myanmar side of the border.
No soldiers were injured during the confrontation. Reinforcements were sent to the area to prevent the traffickers from returning and to secure the site until daylight inspection could be carried out.
At 7 a.m. the following morning, officers surveyed the clash location and discovered 11 abandoned sack-backpacks. Each contained approximately 200,000 methamphetamine tablets. In total, the haul amounted to an estimated 2.2 million pills, making it one of the largest border-area seizures so far this year.
Major General Sathit Waiyanon, Commander of the Pha Muang Task Force, and Colonel Suphan Roiput, Commander of the Thap Chao Tak Special Task Force, visited the site along with officers from partner agencies. They inspected the evidence and later held a briefing to provide details of the operation.
According to the Task Force, the interception highlights the increasing pressure faced by drug networks operating along the northern border. Mae Sai and surrounding districts remain significant entry points for narcotics produced in remote areas of neighbouring countries.
After the on-site procedures were completed, the seized drugs were handed over to investigators at Mae Sai Police Station. Police will now expand the investigation to identify the specific network responsible and determine where the shipment was intended to be delivered inside Thailand.
Officials say additional patrols and joint operations will continue as authorities intensify efforts to combat large-scale drug trafficking along the border.
