Thai government seizes haul of ‘Winnie The Pooh’ pills at Mekong river

The Thai government has seized a haul of pills shaped like the cartoon character Winnie The Pooh at the Mekong River in the That Phanom district.

Two abandoned bags on the Mekong river bank were discovered by a joint group of military, police, and naval soldiers searching for drugs brought in illegally from neighbouring Laos.

The pills were seized on late Saturday night (July 16), a police source has said. The pills had a combined value of roughly THB20 million.

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Reportedly, a long-tail boat was used to transfer the bags to the Thai side of the river, where they were dumped in Ban Kham Phak Phraew hamlet in tambon Nam Kam of That Phanom district.

These big bags were found with 19 transparent plastic bags - all containing over 18,800 ecstasy pills in the shape of Winnie the Pooh and an additional 54,939 sleeping pills.

It was thought that the ecstasy tablets had been transported to Laos from Europe with the intention of being sold in Thailand. The drug mule dropped the shipment and then reportedly crossed the river again, according to the police.

Pills are often bought by locals and tourists alike in entertainment venues for between 800 and 1,000 baht per pill, and are popular among young people.

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Although there are fewer restrictions on cannabis use in Thailand, if you test positive for Category I or II drugs, such as Yaba, cocaine, Ice, or ecstasy, you might be sentenced to up to three years in jail and/or pay a fine of up to THB 60,000.

In 2017, a Lancaster County man was arrested in Columbia for also carrying several Winnie The Pooh ecstasy pills. He was charged with an intention to distribute these pills.

[Via: Mixmag Asia and Bangkok Post]

Aneesa Ahmed is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow her on Twitter