Monitoring Desk
BANGKOK: Thai border forces killed 15 suspected drug smugglers in a forest area in the country’s north near the Myanmar border on Thursday.
Military authorities said that when the forces returned to inspect the area in the Fang district of Chiang Mai province, they found 15 dead bodies of the smugglers and 29 backpacks packed with crystal meth on Thursday morning. A news agency said a firefight ensued for about 10 minutes; no soldiers were injured.
Thai soldiers encountered the smugglers
The Pha Muang Task Force is the military unit in charge of security in Thailand’s northern provinces border. The soldiers encountered the smugglers of suspects carrying backpacks Wednesday evening, and Tai forces ordered them to stop, but they opened fire.
It is still being further investigated whether the smugglers had brought meth from Myanmar. This way is a common one for drugs being smuggled into Thailand. The Tai force did not say whether the smugglers are believed to have escaped.
