British tourists attempting to smuggle cannabis out and in of Thailand is nothing latest but stories about this appear to be on the rise.
4 tried to cover their faces while they were arrested for allegedly attempting to smuggle 131kg of cannabis out of Koh Samui airport in Thailand on March 15.
Their eight suitcases were stuffed stuffed with vacuum-sealed bags of marijuana grown on the island.
The luggage owners, Antony Paul Mudd, 62, from London, Billy Daniel Harman, 36, from Newham, Philip Edward Goldstone, 63, from West Ham, and John George Canning, 34, from London, were detained.
A police spokesman said: ‘The suspects claimed they were hired by an employer abroad to travel to Thailand and smuggle cannabis overseas.
‘The employer arranged for travel tickets and accommodation for them, and they might receive the cannabis-packed suitcases at their hotels. They travelled to Koh Samui through a domestic flight from Bangkok. The alleged smugglers’ were flying to Singapore with their final destination being London in England.
‘Using cannabis is legal in Thailand nevertheless it can’t be exported or carried overseas. That’s a criminal offense and police will catch offenders.’
One other British tourist Darryl Poole, 30, from Camden, north London, was detained on March 17 for allegedly attempting to smuggle 165kg of cannabis out of Thailand from the identical airport.
It comes after 10 British people, one Malaysian, one Dutch, and one Romanian, were caught at Samui International Airport earlier this month reportedly attempting to hold cannabis to the UK.
Two ‘suspicious’ bags from the illegal haul were left behind and British tourist, Mohammed Azeem Ahmed, 26, was identified as considered one of the bags owners on March 14.
He reportedly left Thailand on a flight to Hong Kong, but was last seen departing a hotel with Darryl and security footage allegedly showed Darryl handed the bag to Mohammed.
He was traced to The Stay Chaweng Beach Resort, where staff confirmed he had stored around 12 large suitcases.
Darryl was arrested on Koh Samui while intercepting a vehicle he had hired to move the suitcases to Bangkok. The bags was crammed with plastic packs of cannabis.
It’s believed the suspect, spooked by increased security at Koh Samui’s airport, decided to ship the drugs to Bangkok first before attempting to smuggle them overseas.
Police Lieutenant General Panumas Boonyalak said: ‘We found that Poole managed the cannabis and hired Ahmed to export it overseas illegally.
‘We charged him with possessing controlled herbs (cannabis) for selling or trading without permission and apprehended him at Koh Samui Police Station for legal motion.
‘Currently, relevant officers are coordinating to intercept the cannabis smuggling network heavily to forestall them from getting overseas. We’re also investigating the employer and relevant individuals within the country.’
Only recently, one other group of 4 British tourists were caught red-handed attempting to smuggle seven suitcases of cannabis out of Thailand.
A British tourist was recently arrested at Phuket airport after cocaine allegedly fell from his pocket during a meltdown.
Why are so many British people getting arrested?
Thailand, a rustic known to be tough on drugs, surprisingly decriminalised cannabis in 2022.
Since then, hundreds of cannabis farms have grown across the country, leading authorities in recent times to clamp down on the drugs again.
Locals have particularly hit out on the rise of ‘drug tourism’ within the country, which has encouraged more young people to make use of the drug.
Many British people on holiday in Thailand have been caught under the influence since decriminalisation in 2022.
Cannabis smoking is allowed for private use in private areas but stays prohibited in public spaces.
Importing and exporting the drug from the country though stays illegal.
Nonetheless, Thai authorities at the moment are discussing tighter security measures to catch out smugglers, which could explain the recent increase in reported arrests.
In response to the National Crime Agency (NCA), the growing trend of cannabis smuggling is fuelled by organised crime groups.
These groups have access to cannabis grown overseas in locations where it’s legal like Thailand.
They then recruit couriers to move it to the UK where it will possibly generate greater profit for them.
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