SURAT THANI - A Thai woman who has lived in Australia for over a decade would have been the receiver of tote bags with hidden heroin from a Thai stewardess had she not been arrested, according to the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB).
ONCB deputy director-general Areepak Ngernbamroong said in Surat Thani province on Monday evening that the Thai expatriate, operating under the alias “Dear”, was set to receive the 12 embroidered tote bags that landed a 26-year-old Thai airways stewardess in detention at Melbourne airport late last month.
Australian police apprehended the stewardess after a sniffer dog pointed to her luggage. Two of the tote bags were found hiding 1.8 kilogrammes of heroin, worth an estimated 10 million baht, within their linings.
According to Ms Areepak, the intended recipient had lived and worked in Australia for over 10 years. Authorities have obtained her name and family name but are still uncertain if she has Australian citizenship.
Officials believe that Ms Dear is part of a network in Australia after finding several suspicious parcels addressed to her. The drugs being sent to her are suspected of originating from the Golden Triangle, smuggled into Thailand through Laos. Australian investigators are looking into a large-scale network connected to the Thai woman.
Officials have determined that drug traffickers have been creating fake social media profiles to employ flight attendants and frequent travellers who offer overseas delivery services to carry their products.
Ms Areepak underlined that present evidence has yet to confirm if Meena, the arrested Thai flight attendant, was actively involved in drug-trafficking. It has been noted that Ms Meena was hired only for 3,700 baht and her bank accounts contain only a few thousand baht.
“At this stage, she is not a suspect but a person detained for the case,” Ms Areepak said, referring to the air hostess.
Ms Meena is scheduled to stand trial in a Melbourne court on Sept 14, when it will be decided whether she will be arraigned, while Thai officials continue gathering as much information as possible to support her case, the ONCB deputy director-general added.
