Biggest drug bust in Asian history: 55 million meth pills seized
Police in Laos are briefing counterparts across the world tonight after seizing 55,664,000 million methamphetamine tablets and over 1.5 tonnes of crystal methamphetamine in the single biggest drug bust ever carried out in Asia.
The haul was uncovered on Thursday morning (28 October) after Laos police intercepted a truck in the Bokeo Province which appeared to be carrying beer from the Lao Brewery Company.
On board the truck, police say they found around 10 million pills, the remainder of the massive haul was uncovered after the truck driver led police to a nearby home.
Two men in custody
Two men have been arrested, including the driver of the truck who is yet to be charged. He has told police he thought he was only carrying beer.
The other man in custody was arrested during the raid on the home where around 45 million methamphetamine pills were found, along with 65 bags of crystal methamphetamine.
On Thursday afternoon, Police in Laos arranged a photo opportunity for local media in which the two arrested men stood guarded in front on the massive drug haul.
Image: https://www.vientianetimes.org.la/
Police are now attempting to track down the source of the drugs.
The Bokeo Province is where the borders of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos meet. The area is known as the ‘Golden Triangle‘ – a term coined by the CIA due to it being the largest opium producing region in the world.
It is the second drug haul of international significance in the area this week. On Monday, Laos police said officers found 6 million amphetamine tablets hidden in a pick-up truck that was driving through the nearby Tonpheung district.
In Laos, the maximum penalty for anyone charged with drug trafficking or drug possession is execution carried out by a firing squad.
Update:
Lao Brewing Company has released as statement.
“We are deeply disappointed that our crates have been abused as a cover for illegal activities and will not hesitate to take immediate action towards anyone misusing our company assets,” it said.