Authorities on Saturday seized about 3,000 illegally cut rosewood logs that could have fetched up to 150 million baht if they had been smuggled out of the country for sale abroad.
The seizure was made at a village in Khun Han district of Si Sa Ket province. Soldiers of the Suranaree Task Force took part in the raid with local police and provincial officials.
The raid took place in Ban Nong Bua village in Non Sung subdistrict, following a tip that a large number of rosewood logs were hidden there pending their sale to foreign buyers. The village is close to the Thai-Cambodian border.
Authorities found both newly cut and old rosewood, also known as phayung, at many of the 100 houses in the village. Some logs were also hidden in a concrete warehouse, where scales were found.
Two suspects were arrested but their accomplices managed to flee. They included the driver of a Nissan pickup truck registered in Si Sa Ket. The truck was carrying a full load of logs.
Authorities said that if all the logs had been smuggled out of the country, the sellers could have earned at least 150 million baht.
Police inspector-general Pol Gen Chalermkiart Srivorakhan said heavy trucks had been seized with rosewood in the village previously. Saturday's raid was carried out because the illegal business was continuing despite the earlier crackdown, he added.