Police from the Narcotics Suppression Center, Metropolitan Police Bureau, arrested a 50-year-old man who owned the bank account used to hire a woman to smuggle methamphetamine hidden inside tamarind paste containers mixed with other goods sent to Japan. He claimed he had previously allowed his Vietnamese girlfriend to use this account.
At 07:00 on 17 Jul 2026, under the direction of Police Lieutenant General Siam Boonsom, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, Police Major General Theeradej Thammasuthi, Deputy Commissioner and Deputy Commander of the Narcotics Suppression Center, Police Major General Chaiya Petchpanya, Commander of Metropolitan Police Division 7, and Police Colonel Athiwat Nuchthaworn, Chief of Bang Yi Khan Police Station, ordered the investigative police of Bang Yi Khan Police Station in cooperation with the Narcotics Suppression Center, Metropolitan Police Bureau, and investigative units from the Metropolitan Police Division 7 to arrest Mr. Somphong Kaewphadi, 50, from Pathum Thani Province, on charges of involvement in an international criminal organization. The arrest took place at a house in Bueng Sanan Subdistrict, Thanyaburi District, Nakhon Nayok Province, on the night of 16 Jul 2026.
The case began when, at 14:00 on 13 Jul 2026, Police Lieutenant Colonel Mangkon Pantharasri, an investigator at Bang Yi Khan Police Station, received a report from Ms. Patcharanan, 43, who works as a courier transporting goods between Thailand and Japan, charging 450 baht per kilogram. On 3 Jul, she was contacted via Facebook by a user named “Chayamin Pai” to send goods from Thailand to Japan. She was later hired to have a rider deliver the goods packed in a cardboard box to her condominium in the Pinklao area, Borommaratchachonnani Road, Arun Amarin Subdistrict, Bangkok Noi District, Bangkok.
On 7 Jul, she inspected the contents of the cardboard box, which included tamarind paste containers, instant noodles, candy, jelly, dried coconut, snacks, seasoning, peanut butter, and herbal inhalers—twelve items totaling about 10 kilograms. She became suspicious because six 1,500-gram tamarind paste containers were unusually heavy. Upon opening one, she found liquid tamarind paste on top and a white solid object inside a clear plastic bag. She returned the contents to the containers, packed all items back into the box, placed it under her condominium, and traveled to Japan. After returning on 11 Jul, she reported to police on 13 Jul. Authorities inspected the items and discovered over 2 kilograms of methamphetamine concealed in the six tamarind paste containers.
Police Major General Theeradej Thammasuthi, Deputy Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau and Deputy Commander of the Narcotics Suppression Center, ordered the investigative team to trace the bank account number used by the person who commissioned the shipment, which led to the arrest of the suspect.
Mr. Somphong stated that he has a Vietnamese girlfriend named Mali, with whom he has been in a relationship for over a year. He said he had provided her with two bank accounts for convenience since she is a foreigner. Currently, his girlfriend is in Vietnam and has informed him she plans to return to Thailand next month.
The arrest team is expanding the investigation to apprehend Ms. Mali, the Vietnamese woman believed to be the actual person commissioning the drug shipment. The suspect was handed over to Bang Yi Khan Police Station for further legal action.