CHON BURI: A South Korean man wanted in his home country for drug offences has been arrested in Sattahip district of this tourist province, police said on Wednesday.
Immigration police apprehended the man, identified only as Kim, 26, at a luxury housing estate in tambon Na Jomtien, said Pol Lt Col Pakphumpipat Sajjaphan, commissioner of the Immigration Bureau (IB).
Between June last year and March this year, South Korean drug suppression police carried out crackdowns on illicit drugs at entertainment venues in the Gangnam and Itaewon districts of Seoul and arrested 70 people, including dealers and users, said the IB chief. Various kinds of drugs were seized along with cash equivalent to 17 million baht.
South Korean investigators found that one of the dealers they were targeting, Mr Kim, had fled to Thailand. Drug suppression authorities in Seoul obtained an Interpol Red Notice for his arrest and sought cooperation from Thailand to help find him, said Pol Lt col Pakphumpipat.
Immigration police found that Mr Kim had entered Thailand on a tourist visa on July 13 last year and was staying a luxury housing estate in tambon Na Jomtien.
The investigators tracked him there and he was handed over to Na Jomtien police station for legal proceedings.
Pol Lt Gen Pakphumpipat said the investigation showed that Mr Kim used the Telegram app to communicate with his customers, and delivered drugs at entertainment venues. The suspect had also smuggled illicit drugs from Thailand to South Korea, he said.
Pol Lt Col Pakphumpipat Sajjaphan, commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, announces the arrest of a South Korean drug suspect at a media briefing in Chon Buri on Wednesday. (Photo: Chaiyot Pupattanapong)