A Chinese man was arrested in Bangkok’s Bang Kapi district on Tuesday and charged with growing 1,000 cannabis plants in a warehouse for online sale.
Pol Lt Gen Pakapong Pongpetra, the commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, said Wu Ding Bin, 41, was detained near his room on Soi Ramkhamhaeng 24/3.
Police allege that Mr. Wu and four Chinese accomplices grew organic cannabis of different varieties at a rented warehouse on Soi On Nut 82 in Prawet district, sold the marijuana online, and delivered the product through courier services.
“Marijuana of foreign varieties is priced at up to 700,000 baht per kilogram,” Pol Lt Gen Pakapong said.
The suspect had visited Thailand in 2018 and left Afterwards, he revisited on a student visa, claiming to learn Muay Thai.
The suspect denied knowledge of the cannabis grown in the warehouse, claiming he was only an electrician. The Bangkok police chief said surveillance camera footage showed the man paid frequent visits to the warehouse while carrying a big bag.
The warehouse had been air-conditioned and lit up around the clock. The electricity bill was 70,000-100,000 baht a month, while the monthly rent was about 40,000 baht.
Before the arrest, the gang had cut off electricity at the warehouse and let the plants die, Pol Lt Gen Pakapong said.
He said police apprehended Mr. Wu because a Hong Kong Chinese man, Ma Ho Yin, 36, was arrested at a building on Soi Ramkhamhaeng 27, with about 300 cannabis plants growing there on May 3. He told police Mr. Wu was doing the same thing.
