Police on Tuesday raided 10 locations in Nonthaburi province and seized about 260,000 smuggled Chinese-made vape pipes and related products, worth about 130 million baht in total.
The contraband goods were confiscated during searches at five warehouses and five houses in Nonthaburi, as part of “Operation Smoke Out”.
Two men were arrested, according to Pol Maj Gen Samran Nuanma, an assistant national police chief, speaking at one of the raided warehouses in Bang Bua Thong district of Nonthaburi.
The action followed an eight-month sting operation targeting online vaper vendors as well as outlets in more than 100 shops nationwide, he said.
“The arrested men were only warehouse supervisors. We believe that the products found at the 10 properties belonged to one Thai man who remains in the country,” Pol Maj Gen Samran said.
The two detained men were paid 20,000 baht a month to guard the warehouse. The seized vape pipes, or e-cigarettes, and related products including e-liquid were imported illegally from China through Laem Chabang port in Chon Buri province, he said.
They were intended for delivery to online buyers and were retailed through more than 100 shops in all regions of the country.
Pol Lt Gen Sayam Boonsom, commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, said detectives focused their investigation on the supply networks operating on websites and through Line chat rooms.
The contraband products were delivered by mail and then retailed in shops, he said.
Reporters asked if any police officers were involved, pointing out that the raided warehouse where he was speaking was behind the Bang Bua Thong police station in Nonthaburi.
The Bangkok police chief said one of the warehouses belonged to an ex-wife of a police officer, but she leased it out and was unaware of the illicit business conducted there.
Pol Maj Gen Noppasin Pulsawat, deputy commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, identified one of the websites involved as vapequeenzstore.com. A check on Tuesday afternoon showed it was “under maintenance”. He identified a vendor as Pat.
He said some of the goods were also smuggled into Thailand through the South.