AYUTTHAYA: An injured drug courier was arrested and speed pills and crystal meth seized after a pickup truck crashed off a slippery road during heavy rain in Bang Pahan district on Thursday morning.
Police were called to the scene of an accident near kilometre marker 34 on the north-bound main highway in tambon Khwan Muang around 8am.
They found a white Chevrolet pickup truck with Bangkok licence plates stuck in a wide ditch off the side of the road. It was still raining, police said.
The vehicle had been locked and abandoned, but there were traces of blood in the area. Police began a search and found some large bags hidden in the grass nearby.
The bags held boxes labelled Chinese tea that when opened were found to contain about 160,000 speed pills and 5kg of crystal methamphetamine in total.
A man with a bleeding, broken leg was found hiding behind a bush on the other side of the road.
He was identified as Wutthipong Khwankaew, 38, of Nakhon Si Thammarat’s Ron Phibun district, and admitted to being the driver of the crashed pickup, according to police. He allegedly admitted he was delivering the drugs to a client before the accident, but refused to give further details.
He was taken to a hospital and later charged with having illicit drugs in his possession with intent to sell.
Police said they were continuing to question him and would extend the investigation.
One of the bags containing packets labelled Chinese tea, but were found to contain speed pills and crystal meth. (Photo by Sunthorn Pongpao)
(Photo by Sunthorn Pongpao)