Smugglers Abandon 500kg of ‘Golden Flying Horse’ Crystal Meth, Flee to Laos

Smugglers Abandon 500kg of ‘Golden Flying Horse’ Crystal Meth, Flee to Laos

BANGKOK, April 26, 2026 — Thai security forces seized 500 kilogrammes of crystal methamphetamine near the Mekong River after smugglers abandoned the shipment and fled back to Laos, officials said on Friday.

The drugs were discovered during a routine patrol in Tha Uthen district of Nakhon Phanom province by local police and Mekong Riverine security units.

Authorities said traffickers had transported 12 sacks of narcotics into Thailand by longtail boat and hidden them on Thai soil before spotting patrol officers and escaping across the river.

Investigators found 500 one-kilogramme packages wrapped in Chinese-style packaging and marked with the “Golden Flying Horse” logo, which intelligence officials associate with premium-grade methamphetamine linked to trafficking networks operating through the Golden Triangle and Laos.

Officials said the drugs were intended for domestic distribution in Thailand and onward trafficking to other countries.

The meth haul has an estimated street value of between 300,000 and 500,000 baht per kilogramme, depending on the destination market.

The seizure adds to a growing regional total. Authorities in Nakhon Phanom have confiscated nearly 30 million methamphetamine tablets and more than three tonnes of crystal meth over the past six months, local media reported.

Thailand has intensified anti-narcotics operations along its northern and northeastern borders, long used as transit routes for drugs produced in the Golden Triangle region.