Police discover stash packed with 7.33 million meth pills hidden beneath fruit orchard

Police discovered a huge drug stash hidden beneath a fruit orchard in Thailand.

The illegal haul was found following investigations into a drug network in northern Chiang Mai province on June 21.

Officers traced the members to the orchard in Ban Mae Khachan village, where they reportedly found two suspects handling large quantities of drugs inside a hut.

Police detained the pair before searching the property.

Footage shows the cops uncovering sacks of meth pills concealed in an underground compartment covered up with metal sheets and dirt.

The bunker-like cache reportedly contained 7.33 million meth pills, which were seized as evidence.

The suspects were taken into custody for legal action.

Police General Archayon Kraithong, commissioner of the Narcotics Suppression Bureau, said the raid followed an earlier drug bust in the area.

He said: ‘This operation reflects the commitment of the Royal Thai Police and all sectors working together to implement the government's policy on tackling narcotics problems.

‘If this quantity of narcotics had reached the black market, it could have caused immense harm to society, affecting children, young people and family institutions.

‘Intercepting drugs at the source is equivalent to cutting off the cycle of distribution and preventing a massive quantity of narcotics from reaching communities.

‘The Narcotics Suppression Bureau will continue to target drug networks in all dimensions, particularly by expanding investigations to pursue the masterminds, financiers and financial networks behind them, to dismantle the capabilities of these criminal organisations completely.'

Thailand has become a notorious hub for drug production and trafficking. In the north of the country, the ‘Golden Triangle' area shares borders with Laos and Myanmar, and has produced large amounts of opium since the 1950s but focus in recent years has shifted to the more profitable methamphetamine.

Officials believe most of the meth is produced in the Shan State of Myanmar before being distributed through neighbouring countries where prices are higher before ending up in the most expensive markets of Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore.

However, cracking down on drug production has been complicated by the influx of crime gangs from China and the Burmese civil war, which has seen the army take over the country - along with control of lucrative drugs chains.