Law enforcement officers on Wednesday launched a series of early morning raids in Chiang Rai, Phayao and Phrae provinces, nabbing 172 drug suspects and seizing more than 400,000 methamphetamine pills.
More than 1,400 police, army and administrative officers participated in the operations, presided over by Pol Lt Gen Thanitsak Theerasawat, which targeted 160 locations in the three northern provinces.
The raids were aimed mainly at gang members led by suspected drug ring leaders Suthiwas Sae-teun and Koijeaw Ngen-on, both of whom were arrested in Phetchabun in March 2014 with three million methamphetamine tablets in their possession. Upwards of 10 firearms, pickup trucks and motorcycles were confiscated.
Of the 100 million baht worth of assets seized yesterday, most belong to members of the Sae-teun family, an ethnic Hmong clan allegedly running a major drug network, according to police.
In Chiang Rai, officers also stormed the house of Ampai Ngam-nonthong, the 34-year-old wife of a Chinese businessman running a cross-border trade company, but found nothing suspicious.
The Chinese man was suspected of being involved in drug networks, officers said.
Pol Lt Gen Thanitsak said the raids, code-named "Dawn Operations by the Mekong River" were undertaken to prevent and suppress drug traffickers who smuggle illicit substances into Thailand via the northern border.
Smugglers hide drugs first in neighbouring countries then bring them to Thailand through Chiang Rai and Phayao, Pol Lt Gen Thanitsak said.
Once inside the country, Hmong networks ferry the narcotics along routes in Phrae and other northeastern provinces.
Evidence collected in yesterday's operations will be shared with the Anti-Money Laundering Office (Amlo), which will map and track the money trails left behind by drug networks, he added.
Meanwhile, drug suppression authorities in Thailand, Myanmar, China and Laos have agreed to work together to thwart drug smuggling along the Mekong River.
Relevant authorities will share information on trafficking and patrol the river, particularly 11 jetties reportedly used for illegal activities, according to Pol Lt Gen Thanitsak.
They will also meet to form strategies to target drug smuggling into Thailand from the border towns of Pong in Myanmar and Muang Mom in Laos.
Both riverside locations are opposite Chiang Saen district of Chiang Rai, where drug smuggling is reportedly rife, Pol Lt Gen Thanitsak added.