Bangkok police investigate crystal meth found in Japan-bound parcel
A person carrying goods between Thailand and Japan alerted police after finding approximately 2.059 kilograms of crystal meth inside six jars of tamarind paste.
- Bangkok police are investigating the discovery of approximately 2.059 kilograms of crystal meth found in a parcel intended for shipment to Japan.
- The narcotics were discovered concealed within six jars of liquid tamarind paste, which were part of a larger shipment of food items.
- A courier, hired via Facebook to transport the goods, reported the package to police after noticing the tamarind jars were unusually heavy.
- Authorities have seized the drugs and are pursuing legal action against the person responsible for attempting to distribute a Category 1 narcotic.
Pol Lt Gen Siam Boonsom, commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, instructed Pol Maj Gen Teeradet Thammasuthee, the deputy commissioner responsible for narcotics, Pol Maj Gen Chaiya Phetpanya, commander of Metropolitan Police Division 7, and the Metropolitan Police narcotics centre to investigate on Thursday (July 16, 2026).
The instruction followed a report filed with investigators by a person who carries goods for customers from Thailand to Japan and from Japan to Thailand.
While the complainant was in Prachuap Khiri Khan on July 3, a person using a Facebook account named “Chayamin Pai” contacted the complainant to arrange the delivery of goods from Thailand to Japan.
The account user hired a delivery rider to bring the goods, packed in a cardboard box, to The Trust Residence Pinklao on Borommaratchachonnani Road in Arun Amarin, Bangkok Noi, Bangkok, on July 4.
Patcharanan returned to The Trust Residence Pinklao to prepare for the journey to Japan on July 6.
The complainant collected the goods to inspect them and pack them in luggage for delivery to Japan on July 7.
After opening the cardboard box, the complainant found six jars of liquid tamarind paste, along with instant noodles, sweets, jelly, dried coconut, snacks, seasonings, peanut butter and herbal inhalers.
There were 12 items in total.
The complainant then examined the tamarind paste jars, which were unusually heavy.
After opening one jar, the complainant found liquid tamarind paste on top.
On reaching inside, the complainant found a white solid object packed in a clear plastic bag, which appeared unusual.
The complainant returned the object to the jar, placed the jar back in the cardboard box with the other goods and carried the box back to its original location beneath The Trust Residence Pinklao.
The complainant then travelled to Japan and returned to Thailand on July 11.
The complainant reported the matter to the police and asked officers to inspect the object on July 13.
Officers found the 40-by-60 cardboard box at the scene and opened it for examination.
Police recorded the seized evidence as six plastic jars, each with a capacity of 1,500 grams, containing liquid tamarind paste and a Category 1 narcotic identified as methamphetamine, or crystal meth.
- Jar 1: approximately 331.3 grams
- Jar 2: approximately 341.1 grams
- Jar 3: approximately 354.5 grams
- Jar 4: approximately 413.1 grams
- Jar 5: approximately 318.4 grams
- Jar 6: approximately 300.6 grams
The seized drugs comprised six blocks with a combined weight of approximately 2.059 kilograms.
Pol Lt Col Mangkorn Panthurasri, an investigation inspector at Bang Yi Khan Police Station, and other members of the arresting team seized all the items and tested the substances using a methamphetamine test kit.
The test indicated the presence of methamphetamine.
Police retained the items as evidence and filed a complaint seeking legal action against the person responsible for “possession of a Category 1 narcotic, methamphetamine or crystal meth, with intent to distribute for commercial purposes and in a manner causing it to spread among the public, without authorisation”.
Investigators subsequently found that the payment received by the complainant for carrying the goods had been transferred through an account belonging to Somphong Kaewphadi, a 50-year-old Pathum Thani resident.
The finding led police from several Metropolitan Police Bureau units and Bang Yi Khan Police Station to locate and arrest him for questioning.
Somphong claimed that he had been in a relationship with a Vietnamese woman named Mali for about a year.
He said he had allowed her to use his Kasikornbank and Siam Commercial Bank accounts for convenience because she was a foreign national.
He added that she was currently in Vietnam and planned to return the following month.
Police initially charged Somphong with “participation in a transnational criminal organisation”.
Officers are continuing to expand the investigation before handing him over to investigators at Bang Yi Khan Police Station for further legal proceedings.
