Police in Bangkok raided a warehouse storing illegal e-cigarettes allegedly intended for sale to minors. The operation resulted in the seizure of 7,000 units valued at over 3 million baht, with the arrest of 29 year old Chayut.
Police yesterday, July 23, received intelligence that the rented property, located in the Nong Bon subdistrict of Prawet district, was being used to store illegally imported e-cigarettes.
The products were supposedly destined for sale to children and teenagers. Acting on this information, a search warrant was executed, leading to the discovery and confiscation of the substantial haul.
During the investigation, the suspect, Chayut, claimed that the e-cigarettes belonged to a Chinese national who had hired him to lease the premises for a monthly fee of 35,000 baht (US$1,090) and to handle various transactions on their behalf.
Chayut was initially charged with concealing and distributing goods that were imported into the kingdom without proper customs clearance.
The police plan to continue their investigation to apprehend the Chinese financier associated with this illegal operation.
The case has been handed over to the investigators at Division 2, Economic Crime Suppression Division, for further legal proceedings.
In similar news, a 20 year old Myanmar national was arrested for smuggling illegal cigarettes worth over 2 million baht through natural paths along the Sangkhla Buri border. The contraband was intended for sale at the Ban Phra Chedi Sam Ong Market.
On July 21, Police Major General Atsadawut Panyaraoon, commander of the 9th Infantry Division and leader of the Surasi Task Force, together with Kanchanaburi governor Athisan Intra, revealed that intelligence had been received about the smuggling operation.
The cigarettes were being secretly transported from the border to inland areas using natural routes to avoid detection by police.
Colonel Phannasak Phriwapanich, commander of the 29th Infantry Regiment, and Colonel Piyanes Phatrasasawatwong, deputy commander of the Lat Ya Task Force under the Surasi Task Force, teamed up with Border Patrol Police Company 134 and officials from Sangkhla Buri district to conduct a patrol and stakeout near Ban Bo Ye Poon in Nong Lu subdistrict, Sangkhla Buri district, Kanchanaburi province.
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