Customs officials have seized more than 1.3 tonnes of dry cannabis buds bound for the United Kingdom at Laem Chabang Port.
Acting on information from international agencies, officers at the port inspected two suspicious shipments on Sept 11 and 16, said Direk Khacharak, director of the Laem Chabang Port Customs Office.
According to their export documents, the goods were to be shipped to the United Kingdom. The first shipment was declared as three pallets of rubber tiles for fitness centres, and the second was said to hold four pallets of cloth gloves.
However, customs officers discovered that the first shipments consisted of 153.3 kilogrammes of cannabis buds worth 5 million baht, while the second shipment held 1.3 tonnes of buds worth 20 million baht.
It was estimated that these cannabis products would be worth the equivalent of 100 million baht in the UK, Mr Direk said.
Those responsible for the shipments would face charges of providing false information about exported goods to circumvent limitations, which is a crime under Sections 202, 244 and 252 of the Customs Act BE 2560 (2017).
Cannabis is officially a controlled herb under Thai law. Those who wish to export or sell cannabis products are required to obtain a licence under Section 46 of the Protection and Promotion of Thai Traditional Medicine Knowledge Act BE 2542.
