CHIANG MAI: Six drug smugglers were killed and 300 kilogrammes of ketamine seized in a clash between soldiers and armed men in Fang district, which borders Shan State in Myanmar, on Monday.
Maj Gen Suparerk Sathapornpol, commander of the army's Pha Muang Force, said a patrol of rangers from the 3rd Army's operations centre and troops from the 4th Cavalry early on Monday spotted 15-20 armed men carrying backpacks walking through forest near Ban Pang Tong village in tambon Mon Pin, Fang district.
The parol called on them to stop for a search, and they responded with gunfire. The soldiers retaliated. The gunfight lasted about 10 minutes.
There were no casualties on the government side. Later in the afternoon, the soldiers scoured the area and found the bodies of six men killed in the clash. They also found and seized 19 abandoned backpacks containing 300kg of ketamine, three shotguns and four mobile phones.
As the soldiers continued to clear the area they spotted two or three men, believed to be smugglers, hiding in a creek. The men fled, escaping into the rugged terrain.
The drugs and other items seized in the clash were taken to Fang police station for legal processing.
