Police have arrested the head of the notorious Ban Na drug gang, according to deputy police chief Pol Gen Chalermkiat Srivorakhan.
Weerayut Kengpipattrakul, 33, was nabbed at a house in the Khlong 3 area on Thursday. It was among 21 locations within Pathum Thani, Bangkok, Nonthaburi and Samut Prakan which anti-narcotics police raided.
Mr Weerayut was wanted on money laundering and collusion charges.
Pol Gen Chalermkiat said the suspect is the leading figure in the extensive Ban Na drug network, active mostly in the Central Plains provinces over the past three years.
Evidence suggested that most of the drug money is being kept in bank accounts registered in Tachilek, a Myanmar town opposite Chiang Rai.
The deputy police chief said the drugs originated in the North before being transported to the Central Plains provinces where they were distributed to customers.
Mr Weerayut denied having any involvement with the drug trade, saying he made his fortune through informal lending, Pol Gen Chalermkiat said.
Police also seized 1.4 million baht in cash and a large quantity of gold jewellery from Mr Weerayut.
Pol Gen Chalermkiat said police expanded their investigation and captured four other suspects after Mr Weerayut's arrest.
However, the names of the other suspects and where they were caught were not disclosed.
The expanded investigation saw a further seizure of the gang's assets, including cars and condominiums worth more than 30 million baht, according to the deputy police chief.
Checks of the money trail also showed that the Ban Na gang is connected to at least two other drug networks.
