Drug Busts - Will They Never Learn?

[PeterRS]

Yet another drug mule has been discovered and arrested in Bangkok. A 23-year old man from the UK was discovered to have 9.1kg of crystal meth wrapped up in foil bags to look like tea in his hotel room. According to Khaosod English, the man was staying at a hotel on Sukhumvit 11. The packages were already in his suitcase when police arrived. The authorities had acted on a tip off about a "narcotics handover in a hotel." Allegedly the man had been given the bag to look after by another British man whose name he only knew as "Snoopy". He was to hand the 'tea' over to customers on September 30 and had been paid 20,000 baht. Judging by the number of officers present in the hotel room, the police were well aware that a drug transfer was about to take place.

Although it seems there was no intent by the young man to smuggle the drugs out of Thailand, he clearly is yet another innocent individual caught up in drug activity. Yet innocence is relative, and when you agree to carry a bag given to you by someone whose name you do not know but is nicknamed "Snoopy", alarm bells must surely have been ringing. When will these young, often poor people desperate to make a bit of cash realise that anyone caught with drugs in Thailand is more likely than not to end up looking at a lengthy jail term in the Bangkok 'Hilton'? I suspect he had never been to Thailand before and just assumed this was easy money. What a stupid man!

https://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/2025/09/30/british-man-caught-with-9kg-of-crystal-meth-in-bangkoks-sukhumvit-hotel/

 

[PeterRS]

More on the drug bust. Britain's Daily Mail - never a newspaper with the most accurate reporting, to be fair - claims the arrested man, George Wilson, comes from an extremely wealthy family and his father is a multi-millionaire, thanks largely to involvement in the pop music business with artists like Iron Maiden, Elton John and Kenny Rodgers. The father's business is worth "hundreds of millions". Wilson himself went to a boarding school allegedly costing £70,000 a year. The family's home is "luxurious".

Wilson is said to have been in Thailand for two weeks. He confirmed the pink bag was his but when asked what was inside, he answered, "I don't know." Contrary to the Khaosod English report, the Daily Mail states he was planning to export the drugs from Thailand and that this was an operation involving a much larger gang of drug smugglers. It is believed the drugs had been made in Myanmar. Penalty in Thailand for carrying this amount of this type of drug is death, always now converted to life in prison. 

My mind finds this whole affair extremely strange. This young man is clearly far from poor - indeed may be borderline rich. He did not stop in Bangkok for just 2 or 3 days like most drug mules. He had been here for 2 weeks in a soi where the hotels are certainly not cheap. Why would a 23-year old from an extremely wealthy family become involved in what he surely must have realised was some form of drug smuggling exercise merely for payment of 20,000 baht? Most mules are paid a minimum of several thousand US$$. It's all very curious!

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15152741/Boarding-school-Thai-drugs-Brit-police-70k.html

[vinapu]

that makes it even more strange indeed, either he was framed or was looking for an adventure. It's proof that wealth and schooling don't make you smart.

Life wasted , sigh

[Keithambrose]

19 hours ago, PeterRS said:

More on the drug bust. Britain's Daily Mail - never a newspaper with the most accurate reporting, to be fair - claims the arrested man, George Wilson, comes from an extremely wealthy family and his father is a multi-millionaire, thanks largely to involvement in the pop music business with artists like Iron Maiden, Elton John and Kenny Rodgers. The father's business is worth "hundreds of millions". Wilson himself went to a boarding school allegedly costing £70,000 a year. The family's home is "luxurious".

Wilson is said to have been in Thailand for two weeks. He confirmed the pink bag was his but when asked what was inside, he answered, "I don't know." Contrary to the Khaosod English report, the Daily Mail states he was planning to export the drugs from Thailand and that this was an operation involving a much larger gang of drug smugglers. It is believed the drugs had been made in Myanmar. Penalty in Thailand for carrying this amount of this type of drug is death, always now converted to life in prison. 

My mind finds this whole affair extremely strange. This young man is clearly far from poor - indeed may be borderline rich. He did not stop in Bangkok for just 2 or 3 days like most drug mules. He had been here for 2 weeks in a soi where the hotels are certainly not cheap. Why would a 23-year old from an extremely wealthy family become involved in what he surely must have realised was some form of drug smuggling exercise merely for payment of 20,000 baht? Most mules are paid a minimum of several thousand US$$. It's all very curious!

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15152741/Boarding-school-Thai-drugs-Brit-police-70k.html

Yes, the 'tip off,' number of officers there, and Bt20,000 all are odd. However he seems to have admitted he was carrying the bags of 'tea',and talked about Snoopy, etc, so it doesn't  look as if he was framed. He could be on drugs, perhaps? Family are involved in the pop  industry, i gather. Or just very dim. Some time ago, I enquired about one private school i had never heard of, in England, expensive, and was told it was a school 'for thickos'.

[unicorn]

On 10/1/2025 at 7:29 PM, PeterRS said:

...Penalty in Thailand for carrying this amount of this type of drug is death, always now converted to life in prison..

Is this a recent phenomenon that Thailand has effectively gotten rid of the death penalty? According to Wikipedia, the death penalty is still enforced in Thailand. Or are death penalties only commuted for drug offenses, rather than for other crimes?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment#Contemporary_use

 

  Abolitionist countries: 110

  Abolitionist-in-law countries for all crimes except those committed under exceptional circumstances (such as crimes committed in wartime): 9

  Abolitionist-in-practice countries (have not executed anyone during the past 10 years or more and are believed to have a policy or established practice of not carrying out executions): 23

  Retentionist countries: 53

[unicorn]

On 10/1/2025 at 7:29 PM, PeterRS said:

...My mind finds this whole affair extremely strange. This young man is clearly far from poor - indeed may be borderline rich....

It looks as though the school he was in, Hurst Lodge, is the 3rd most expensive in the entire United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurst_Lodge_School

"...In 2001 The Daily Telegraph reported that Hurst Lodge was the third most expensive prep school in Great Britain, coming just after Colet Court, the junior school of St Paul's, and the Dragon School, Oxford, but before Horris Hill, Papplewick, St John's Beaumont, Cheam and Ludgrove, all eight of which then charged more than £13,000 a year...". 

His case brings to mind that of the infamous "affluenza teen," Ethan Couch, who killed four people and injured a dozen others while driving drunk and high on drugs. That man received a very lenient sentence, which reinforced his sense of rich entitlement. He continued to behave like the sociopath he is after serving only 2 years in prison, and continued to be spoiled and abetted by his parents. In one instance, his mother foolishly even took him to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, despite his being on probation for his felonies. I think both are still carrying on with their sociopathic ways. Trump is another example of a sociopath who believes he's above the law, and that he can behave any way he pleases with no fear of consequences (and, with his current position, he is de facto above the law). Unfortunately for George Wilson, he's not as clever, and maybe the law will actually come down on him. 

[Keithambrose]

4 hours ago, unicorn said:

It looks as though the school he was in, Hurst Lodge, is the 3rd most expensive in the entire United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurst_Lodge_School

"...In 2001 The Daily Telegraph reported that Hurst Lodge was the third most expensive prep school in Great Britain, coming just after Colet Court, the junior school of St Paul's, and the Dragon School, Oxford, but before Horris Hill, Papplewick, St John's Beaumont, Cheam and Ludgrove, all eight of which then charged more than £13,000 a year...". 

His case brings to mind that of the infamous "affluenza teen," Ethan Couch, who killed four people and injured a dozen others while driving drunk and high on drugs. That man received a very lenient sentence, which reinforced his sense of rich entitlement. He continued to behave like the sociopath he is after serving only 2 years in prison, and continued to be spoiled and abetted by his parents. In one instance, his mother foolishly even took him to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, despite his being on probation for his felonies. I think both are still carrying on with their sociopathic ways. Trump is another example of a sociopath who believes he's above the law, and that he can behave any way he pleases with no fear of consequences (and, with his current position, he is de facto above the law). Unfortunately for George Wilson, he's not as clever, and maybe the law will actually come down on him. 

The sentence for Couch was very lenient indeed. Clearly his family were well connected. He only went to prison for a breach of probation. There would have been numerous  civil suits on behalf of dead and injured, which may, or may not, have been handled by his insurers,  if he was insured. 

 

The school mentioned for Wilson, is a 'prep school', that is 5 to 13, it would be interesting  to know where he went next. 

[unicorn]

2 hours ago, Keithambrose said:

...The school mentioned for Wilson, is a 'prep school', that is 5 to 13, it would be interesting  to know where he went next. 

Hurst Lodge School
Location
Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
Yateley Hall, Firgrove Road   Yateley ,  Hampshire ,  GU46 6HJ [1]   England
Information
Type	Independent
Established	1945
Founder	Dorice Stainer[2]
Specialist	performing arts
Headmistress	Victoria Smit[1]
Staff	30 full-time, 20 part-time[3]
Gender	Co-educational
Age	3 to 18[1]
Enrolment	250[1]
Houses	Stainer, Scott, Randall, Eden
Website	https://www.hurstlodgeschool.co.uk/

[Keithambrose]

10 hours ago, unicorn said:

Hurst Lodge School
Location
Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
Yateley Hall, Firgrove Road   Yateley ,  Hampshire ,  GU46 6HJ [1]   England
Information
Type	Independent
Established	1945
Founder	Dorice Stainer[2]
Specialist	performing arts
Headmistress	Victoria Smit[1]
Staff	30 full-time, 20 part-time[3]
Gender	Co-educational
Age	3 to 18[1]
Enrolment	250[1]
Houses	Stainer, Scott, Randall, Eden
Website	https://www.hurstlodgeschool.co.uk/

Thanks. So not a 'prep school', then. I see it specialises in performing arts, which fites the media background  of the father.

[Mavica]

That risk taken as a courier for the equivalent of 460 British Pounds.

[Keithambrose]

11 hours ago, Keithambrose said:

Thanks. So not a 'prep school', then. I see it specialises in performing arts, which fites the media background  of the father.

Bearing in mind the arts connection,  perhaps they have additional courses in drug running?

[jimmie50]

What we don't know is the back story.  Perhaps his family had cut him off financially and this was an act of desperation.  Perhaps he has been protected and sheltered by his family his entire life and he felt like they would rescue him regardless of the consequences.  Perhaps he simply wasn't thinking and lacks common sense.  It is hard to know what would cause a young person with such an upbringing to turn to such a venture, but I doubt ignorance will be an adequate defense.  

[unicorn]

55 minutes ago, jimmie50 said:

What we don't know is the back story.  Perhaps his family had cut him off financially and this was an act of desperation.  Perhaps he has been protected and sheltered by his family his entire life and he felt like they would rescue him regardless of the consequences.  Perhaps he simply wasn't thinking and lacks common sense.  It is hard to know what would cause a young person with such an upbringing to turn to such a venture, but I doubt ignorance will be an adequate defense.  

Reasons #2 and #3 seem the most likely explanations. Regardless, this episode comes off as someone with no moral compass. Sometimes maternal methamphetamine use during pregnancy can damage the fetus's brain beyond salvation. This video describes a pair of 19 year-old sociopaths, both of whose mothers probably used meth during pregnancy. One was adopted at birth by a loving family, who tried everything they could to help out, including counseling, residential rehab, and reform school. As this one even admitted, he'd been given every chance possible, yet still ended up a callous multiple murderer. The other grew up in an abusive home, but ended up a tiny bit less sociopathic. The adopted one was executed, and the one who grew up in the abusive family received 40 years to life. It seems extremely doubtful that the adopted one, Michael Perry, could ever be trusted to go back into society.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Perry_and_Jason_Burkett

"After Perry dropped out and started stealing from his adoptive parents, they admitted him to various reform schools and therapy programs, all of which were unsuccessful. In an interview years later, Perry said, "I had opportunity after opportunity and I wasted them and rebelled. That's one of the reasons why I got the death penalty."..."

Of course, this case could simply represent the problem of rich children who are spoiled rotten, like the Menendez brothers, sometimes labeled "affluenza." I read Paris Hilton's autobiography, and she could have gone that way, but seemed to be able to eventually channel her character into a positive direction. It took a lot of hard lessons, though, to teach her that bad actions have bad consequences. 

[Keithambrose]

3 hours ago, unicorn said:

Reasons #2 and #3 seem the most likely explanations. Regardless, this episode comes off as someone with no moral compass. Sometimes maternal methamphetamine use during pregnancy can damage the fetus's brain beyond salvation. This video describes a pair of 19 year-old sociopaths, both of whose mothers probably used meth during pregnancy. One was adopted at birth by a loving family, who tried everything they could to help out, including counseling, residential rehab, and reform school. As this one even admitted, he'd been given every chance possible, yet still ended up a callous multiple murderer. The other grew up in an abusive home, but ended up a tiny bit less sociopathic. The adopted one was executed, and the one who grew up in the abusive family received 40 years to life. It seems extremely doubtful that the adopted one, Michael Perry, could ever be trusted to go back into society.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Perry_and_Jason_Burkett

"After Perry dropped out and started stealing from his adoptive parents, they admitted him to various reform schools and therapy programs, all of which were unsuccessful. In an interview years later, Perry said, "I had opportunity after opportunity and I wasted them and rebelled. That's one of the reasons why I got the death penalty."..."

Of course, this case could simply represent the problem of rich children who are spoiled rotten, like the Menendez brothers, sometimes labeled "affluenza." I read Paris Hilton's autobiography, and she could have gone that way, but seemed to be able to eventually channel her character into a positive direction. It took a lot of hard lessons, though, to teach her that bad actions have bad consequences. 

Remember the Leopold and Loeb murder.

[unicorn]

1 hour ago, Keithambrose said:

Remember the Leopold and Loeb murder.

How old do you think I am??? 😬

[PeterRS]

There can of course be a multitude of reasons and we may never know unless the young man gives a reliable confession. Given the BIB habit of wringing less than reliable confessions out of alleged criminals, perhaps even then we will not know.

But the obvious question marks surely have to be why stay in Thailand in a good hotel for two whole weeks before becoming involved in drugs? If drugs were his objective, he could have arranged a deal and tried to skip the country much more quickly. Secondly, why just 20,000 baht to ship almost 9 kgs of the drug? For that huge amount of the drug, he could have been offered a great deal more and accepted.

Then which account is correct? Was he simply planning to distribute to another party in Thailand, as one news account claimed? Or was he intending to try and export it? And on this point, why use a pink suitcase? As a regular traveller, I have rarely seen that colour on the carousels, mostly black or another dark colour and therefore virtually anonymous.

There seem to be no news updates on the internet since 4 days ago. If we hear no more, perhaps we might assume that Daddy has paid the BIB a mega ransom and the case has just vanished.

[PeterRS]

2 hours ago, Keithambrose said:

Remember the Leopold and Loeb murder.

Never heard of it! Besides, I think this thread is going a bit too far off the subject when dealing with cases involving murders. It's a drugs bust.

Apologies for my earlier comment that the death penalty is always commuted to life imprisonment in Thailand. That is not accurate. The last execution took place in 2018 of a Thai, a known gang member who had murdered a teenager, and there are quite a few on 'death row', a large percentage for drug offences. I have no access to statistics, but I can find no facts about foreigners being executed in recent decades.

An Australian Nola Blake was arrested in 1987 for drug trafficking (for which she had been paid US$49,000) and given a death sentence, later commuted to life in prison. No westerner had faced death in the preceding decades. After 11 years in jail, Blake received a Royal Pardon.

[Keithambrose]

8 hours ago, unicorn said:

How old do you think I am??? 😬

Over a hundred?

[Keithambrose]

8 hours ago, PeterRS said:

Never heard of it! Besides, I think this thread is going a bit too far off the subject when dealing with cases involving murders. It's a drugs bust.

Apologies for my earlier comment that the death penalty is always commuted to life imprisonment in Thailand. That is not accurate. The last execution took place in 2018 of a Thai, a known gang member who had murdered a teenager, and there are quite a few on 'death row', a large percentage for drug offences. I have no access to statistics, but I can find no facts about foreigners being executed in recent decades.

An Australian Nola Blake was arrested in 1987 for drug trafficking (for which she had been paid US$49,000) and given a death sentence, later commuted to life in prison. No westerner had faced death in the preceding decades. After 11 years in jail, Blake received a Royal Pardon.

The Leopold and Loeb murder caused a sensation in its time, two rich kids murdering another for fun. Also famous for closing speech of defence attorney,  Clarence Darrow, who got them off the death penalty. Well known film of the event, 'Compulsion', starring Orson Welles. Worth watching.

[unicorn]

16 hours ago, PeterRS said:

Never heard of it! Besides, I think this thread is going a bit too far off the subject when dealing with cases involving murders. It's a drugs bust...

That quantity of drugs would have almost certainly led to multiple deaths, and a substantial number of shortened lives. Not that I approve of the death penalty for drug trafficking, but in those quantities, the difference is only in the directness of the killing. 

[unicorn]

8 hours ago, Keithambrose said:

Over a hundred?

That reminds me of the time HRH Elizabeth II visited Jamestown, Virginia to commemorate the 400th anniversary of its founding in 2007. Apparently some official told her something along the lines of "You will recall this was the first permanent British settlement in North America..." which resulted in a dirty look from the octogenarian Queen. He then specified "from the history books, I mean."