Six suspects arrested for 'major drug network linked to grenade attacks on homes to collect debts'
Six suspects were arrested over an alleged major drug network bombing homes to collect debts in southern Thailand.
The suspects reportedly recruited local youths to hurl grenades at homes to force people to repay their drug debts.
Police said the youths, many of whom were drug users who owe money themselves, were hired through intermediaries and paid between 10,000 and 20,000 baht for each attack.
Eleven grenade attacks were reported in Trang in 2026, with investigations linking most of them to the drug network allegedly led by fugitive drug trafficker Santisuk believed to be hiding in a neighbouring country.
Police said on Friday that six members have been arrested following a months-long probe that began in December 2025.
Wiphawee, 28, and Wanisa, 22, were charged with handling smuggled goods, while Hathairat, 35, faced the same charge along with illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.
Thaksin, 50, and Korakot, 26, were charged with possessing explosives and carrying them in public, while Natthawat, 25, was charged with possessing methamphetamine for commercial distribution.
Officers seized 874,692 methamphetamine pills, 8kg of ketamine, an AK-47 rifle, three handguns, a shotgun and two Arges-84 hand grenades.
They also confiscated more than 2.82 million baht in cash, five cars and 38 baht-weight of gold bars, with seized assets valued at more than 7.19 million baht.
Three bank accounts containing around 13 million baht were also frozen.
Authorities said the bombings had damaged homes, vehicles and other properties belonging to innocent residents and neighbours who had no connection to the drug trade.
In response, Provincial Police Region 9 and Trang Provincial Police investigated the incidents and managed to resolve 10 of the 11 cases, apprehending 25 suspects.
Courts also issued arrest warrants for two fugitives.
Investigators found that the Arges-84 hand grenades were manufactured abroad and were not used by the Thai Armed Forces.
They were possibly imported from neighbouring countries.
On October 16, the arrest team intercepted the grenade-throwing team and seized two grenades.
Investigators found that nearly all the incidents involved local youths hired through a multi-tiered network of intermediaries.
Many of them were drug users who already owed money and were coerced into carrying out the attacks as payment for their debts.
The network arranged the attacks through middlemen, paying between 10,000 and 20,000 baht for each assignment.
An investigation into financial transactions and distribution routes, which began in December 2025, indicated that the network relied on private express courier services as its primary method of transporting goods into and out of the area.
Narcotics were sent as parcels from northern border regions directly to recipients in Trang for distribution to small-scale dealers.
Subordinates collected drug proceeds and used them to purchase gold bars, which were then packaged and shipped by express parcel delivery back to the northern border.
Officers intercepted both supply lines, seizing parcels containing approximately 290,000 methamphetamine pills, 17.6 pounds (8 kilogrammes) of ketamine, and 26 baht-weight of gold bars at a private logistics distribution centre in Phitsanulok.
Investigators also confirmed that the grenades were also transported through parcel delivery services, posing serious safety risks to logistics personnel and members of the public along the delivery routes.
Police Major General Pattanasak Bubphasuwan, commander of the Crime Suppression Division, said: ‘On October 29, we conducted raids at multiple locations across Mueang Trang, Na Yong, Huai Yot and Kantang districts.
‘We arrested three suspects under arrest warrants, two of whom were wanted for explosive device offences and one for methamphetamine pill distribution.
‘Additionally, three individuals were caught in the act.
‘We seized 1.15 million baht in cash, a shotgun with 50 rounds of ammunition, and various other items of evidence.
‘These operations bring the total value of assets seized and frozen from this syndicate to more than 21.3 million baht.'
Thailand has become a notorious hub for drug use, production, and trafficking. In the north of the country, the ‘Golden Triangle' area shares borders with Laos and Myanmar, and has produced large amounts of opium since the 1950s but focus in recent years has shifted to the more profitable methamphetamine.
Officials believe most of the meth is produced in the Shan State of Myanmar before being distributed through neighbouring countries where prices are higher before ending up in the most expensive markets of Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore.
However, cracking down on drug production has been complicated by the influx of crime gangs from China and the Burmese civil war, which has seen the army take over the country - along with control of lucrative drugs chains.
