Phuket-based flight attendant linked to May heroin shipment in Australia-bound case
Thai authorities cited a May case involving a Phuket-based flight attendant after six kilogrammes of heroin sewn into silk blouses was intercepted on its way to Australia.
A Thai flight attendant living in Phuket was linked to a heroin case in May in which police intercepted six kilogrammes of the drug sewn into silk blouses that were to be sent to Australia, according to Thai authorities cited in a Bangkok Post report.
The package had been sent from northern Thailand to the attendant in Phuket. Investigators said the shipment was intended for delivery to Australia.
According to the report, the attendant had advertised courier services online and told police he did not know the package contained drugs. He said it was the third shipment of that kind he had received for delivery to Australia.
The Phuket case was cited as a similar incident while Thai authorities expanded a separate investigation into a Thai Airways flight attendant arrested in Melbourne after Australian authorities found one kilogramme of heroin concealed in her luggage.
Thai officials said the cases have added to concerns over the use of airline crew and courier-style side jobs in cross-border drug smuggling. Transport Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said screening for pilots and cabin crew would need to become stricter, with more attention given to drug checks for outbound passengers.
