A life-size statue of Optimus Prime and other Transformers characters were packed with massive amounts of ketamine, Thai police say. Police in Bangkok, Thailand intercepted about 705 pounds of ketamine hidden inside Transformers statues, marking one of the country’s biggest busts in recent years. The estimated market value is as high as NT$600 million (about $20 million USD).
Channel News Asia (CNA) first reported that the ketamine was found on April 25. A woman allegedly tried to smuggle the ketamine inside life-size statues of the Transformers characters Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Greenlight and others. The statues were enroute to a movie exhibition in Taiwan. Transformers is the popular movie series directed by Michael Bay, based on the toy franchise. Drug traffickers typically seek out the least likely places to hide drugs in order to evade police, sometimes getting creative such as in the case of the Thailand bust.
Fox News reports that Thai police in Bangkok seized 320 kilograms (705 pounds) of ketamine in a freight warehouse. The suspect allegedly packed 320 kilograms of ketamine into 320 packages containing one kilo each. The ketamine was then allegedly concealed with an outer package filled with Tieguanyin tea to deter police, and stuffed into 10 bases of the model robots. Each base was stuffed with 32 packs of ketamine.
An unidentified woman allegedly paid around $4,800 USD to the shipping company to help her transport the statues. Authorities said she had received instructions from another unidentified woman in Laos who would receive the shipment of drugs.
Phanurat Lukboon, secretary-general of Thailand’s Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB), held a press conference today to explain the case.
“Currently, we are facing a drug trafficking problem with transnational crime networks hidden in all regions, using Thailand as a base to smuggle drugs to third countries continuously through international shipments via air or …
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Author: Benjamin M. Adams / High Times
