Police have arrested four Vietnamese people at a warehouse in Bang Bon district of Bangkok, where they found cannabis being processed for sale to markets in Europe.
The Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB) said police and public health officials raided the two-storey warehouse on Bang Bon 5 Road on Tuesday after people complained about the cannabis smell from the air-conditioned and insulated building.
Complainants told police that production at the warehouse never stopped and it gave off unhealthy odours and noise, affecting especially elderly people and children in the surrounding communities.
Police found three Vietnamese men and a Vietnamese woman aged 39 to 51 making cannabis products in rooms where cannabis was stored, processed and pressed into bars.
“The unlicensed production started three months ago,” said Pol Lt Gen Achayon Kraithong, the NSB commissioner. “They bought cannabis buds from farms and processed them into various products for buyers in Europe.
“The products were sold at 22,000 baht per kilogramme and the retail price in Europe could reach 100,000 baht per kilogramme.”
Another Vietnamese man suspected of heading the operation was not arrested because he had just left to meet buyers in Morocco, said Pol Lt Gen Achayon.
The Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine said its officials found 442kg of cannabis buds with an estimated value of 13.3 million baht at the site.
The suspects were charged with making cannabis products without a licence. The charge carries a jail term of up to one year and/or a fine of up to 20,000 baht, the department said.
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