The seizure was confirmed in a report released by Phuket authorities following the late-night operation, which began at about 10:30pm yesterday (Sept 24).
Acting on intelligence from the ONCB, officers from the ONCB Region 5 office, the Third Naval Area Command, the Marine Police Region 3 branch and the Phuket Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) deployed three patrol boats to intercept a suspicious double-deck passenger vessel anchored near Chalong Pier.
After surrounding the vessel, officers boarded and discovered four men on board along with 20 sacks containing more than 500kg of crystal meth. During the search, one of the men leapt into the water in a desperate bid to escape. He was later identified as the boat’s captain, a 61-year-old Myanmar national known as ‘Captain Bat’.
Witnesses said the captain clung to a mooring rope and appeared exhausted as officers attempted to bring him back on board. He was eventually pulled from the water and transported by ambulance to Chalong Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
Investigators said the vessel, a tourist snorkelling and diving boat, had departed Kawthaung, Myanmar, carrying a total of one tonne of crystal meth. Half of the shipment ‒ about 500kg ‒ had already been offloaded to an agent in Satun Province before the boat was forced by heavy seas to take shelter in Chalong Bay from Sept 21-23.
According to police, the crew reportedly planned to continue their journey to international waters or the border of a neighbouring country once the weather improved on Sept 26.
Authorities believe the drugs were bound for markets outside Thailand and are now working to identify the Thai national alleged to have ordered the shipment from Kawthaung.
The three surviving crew members, along with the seized narcotics and the vessel, were taken to Chalong Pier for questioning and further investigation.
Officials described the bust as one of the largest marine drug seizures in Phuket in recent years and said the operation underscored the island’s role as a key transit point in regional trafficking networks.