A member of a drug caravan was killed and 10 kilogrammes of heroin seized in a clash with army rangers along the Thai-Myanmar border in Chiang Mai on Friday.
The ranger team from the Phamuang military task force spotted eight heavily armed men walking through tambon Taton in Mae Ai district, opposite Santisuk village in Mae Chan district of Chiang Rai, at about 4am, Thai media reported on Saturday.
The rangers ordered the suspected drug traffickers to surrender but they resisted and opened fire. The rangers returned fire. During the subsequent exchange of gunfire, one armed man hurled a bomb into the group of rangers, but it failed to detonate. The attackers then fled the scene.
After the fierce clash, a member of the caravan was found dead at the scene and a sack containing 10 kilogrammes of heroin left nearby. The Chinese-made bomb was also found.