KOTA BARU: Thai police have seized over 500,000 Yaba pills, valued at up to RM3 million, in a raid last week.
Authorities suspect that a portion of the drugs was intended for smuggling into Malaysia.
In a statement today, a police spokesman confirmed the arrest of a man believed to be a member of a drug trafficking syndicate operating between Thailand and Malaysia.
The raid took place on July 10 at the suspect's home in Sungai Golok sub-province, directly across the border from Rantau Panjang in Kelantan.
"The Thai police team raided the house following public tip-offs on drug activities," the spokesman said.
"After raiding the place, they found the pills in several packets and later detained the local man."
The spokesman added that Thai police believed that a portion of the drugs was meant for local distribution, while the remainder was likely to be smuggled into Malaysia via the Kelantan border.
Sungai Golok district police chief, Police Colonel Jadsadavit Inprapan, confirmed the arrest of the 34-year-old suspect, who is currently under investigation.
It is learnt that the suspect has been involved in drug trafficking for years and has good networking with Kelantan counterpart.
The Sungai Golok border town has long been a key transit point for drug smugglers, who use numerous illegal jetties along the border to transport their goods into Malaysia.