Australian caught with 4.26kg of crystal meth at Suvarnabhumi airport

An elderly Australian man was arrested by customs officials at Suvarnabhumi international airport Sunday night, as he was trying to smuggle 4.26kg of crystal methamphetamine, or ‘ice’, to Australia hidden in his luggage.

X-ray machines, used to examine the luggage of departing passengers, revealed 12 suspicious packages in the Australian’s luggage, so customs officers carried out a more thorough search.

They discovered a specially-made hidden compartment containing 12 packs of soap-like objects wrapped in black plastic. The items were subjected to a chemical test, which confirmed the presence of crystal meth. The estimated street value of the haul in Australia is about 1.3 million baht (~AU$61,500).

The 68-year-old suspect, who was planning to fly to Perth, has been detained for further questioning by anti-narcotics officers.

According to the Customs Department’s records, 197 drug seizures have been made at the airport since last October, including heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine and crystal methamphetamine.