PETALING JAYA: Three Malaysians face up to 15 years in prison in Thailand after being charged with possessing and trafficking 87kg of methamphetamine allegedly intended to be smuggled into Malaysia.
The three men were arrested at the Hat Yai railway station in Songkhla on July 31 after authorities found the drugs hidden in three wheeled suitcases and three backpacks, reported Bernama.
Region 9 Office of the Narcotics Control Board director Ratchapon Palakul said the suspects boarded a train in Bangkok bound for Hat Yai and were intercepted upon arrival at the railway station.
“Initial investigations found that one of the suspects admitted to being offered RM8,000 each by a syndicate to smuggle the drugs into Malaysia,” he said, according to Bernama.
Ratchapon said the three suspects had been charged with possessing and trafficking Category 1 narcotics for distribution.
If convicted, they face up to 15 years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to 1.5 million baht (about RM183,000).
He said investigations were ongoing to identify the mastermind and other members of the cross-border drug trafficking syndicate.
