BANGKOK, Feb 12 – Thailand’s Office of Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) on Sunday reported that 135,445 persons were arrested on drug-related charges over the past four months as part of the government’s illicit drug suppression policy.
The ONCB reported the arrests accounted for 35 percent of the government’s target, which came under the “War on Drugs” policy.
Between September 11, 2011 and Jan 31, 2012, 135,445 suspects were arrested in 141,031 drug-related cases. Among them, 21,064 were considered “important” cases.
16 millions methamphetamine pills, 600 kilogrammes of crystal methamphetamine (commonly known as “ice”), 200 kilogrammes of heroin, 3,000 kilogrammes of marijuana and four million pseudoephedrine pills were seized, with a total street value of about Bt600 million.
1,527 drug cases resulted in asset freeze of involved persons, according to the anti-narcotics office.
The ONCB said Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung, in his capacity as Director of the National Command Center for Drugs (NCCD), is scheduled to chair a meeting on Monday to summarize the government’s drug crackdown in the last four months and lay out new measures for the second phase of operations.
Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm earlier pledged that the drug problem was on the national agenda and that relevant authorities would be able to make considerable advances in the “War on Drugs” within one year.
