Police tracing the heroin carried to Australia by a Thai Airways air hostess believe it was produced in Myanmar and smuggled into northern Thailand through Laos.
Police said on Sunday the heroin smuggled by the 26-year-old flight attendant, identified only as Ms Mina, was produced by a syndicate in Myanmar. It entered Thailand through Chiang Kham district in northern Phayao province, which borders Laos.
Recent raids in Chiang Kham resulting in the seizure of millions of methamphetamine pills confirmed this. From there the drugs were moved through Thailand, with most going overseas, police said.
Uthai Khanapiwat has admitted delivering the parcel containing the elephant tote bags with the hidden heroin to Ms Mina at her condominium in Bang Na district on June 22. He told police he picked up that and other parcels in Chiang Kham on June 20.
Mr Uthai was arrested in Phitsanulok on Friday. He was allegedly on the run. He also allegedly told police he had previously made three similar deliveries.
Mr Uthai's behaviour made police suspicious of the details he gave in his statement made during interrogation. He had quickly changed his phone and tried to dump the other drugs in his possession after Ms Mina was arrested at Melbourne Airport on June 25.
The parcels he brought from Phayao were kept at his apartment in Ayutthaya. On June 22, he hired Atircah Supian to drive him to Ms Mina's Bangkok condo to deliver the parcel intended for her.
A search at his apartment on Saturday found traces of heroin in tote bags. Other bags had been dumped on a roadside in Ayutthaya on Friday as he tried to destroy evidence, according to police.
On Sunday the discarded bags were found when Mr Uthai and his friend showed police where he dumped them.
