Drug gang leader shot dead after bloody shootout in Nan

SECURITY personnel shot dead a suspected drug-trafficking gang leader and arrested one of his men in Nan province yesterday in an unfolding operation in which as many as 12 soldiers and police have been shot. 

Three other gang members reportedly remain on the run. 

Soldiers and police intensified their operation to nail down the members of this gang, after they shot the security personnel on Thursday night. 

The most seriously wounded was Colonel Settapon Kettem, chief-of-staff of the 38th Army Circle. 

Settapon was shot in the head and in the chest as he led a team of about 50 policemen and soldiers in searching several houses in Huai Labaoya, a largely tribal village in Muang district, on Thursday night. 

At the time of the attack, his team had found more than 1,700 methamphetamine tablets in the possession of two villagers including the dead alleged drug-trafficking gang leader, Wen Kuan Chao. As the team left a house to go to another house, gunshots were fired and eight officials were wounded. Wen, 64, was also known as Sadam the Brutal. 

More gunfire ensued as the team tried to evacuate the wounded. During the exchange of gunfight, three security personnel were shot. 

After the team managed to leave Huai Labaoya on Thursday night, arrangements were made for Settapon to be airlifted from a local hospital to Phramongkutklao Hospital in Bangkok yesterday. 

Following surgery, Settapon’s condition was listed as stable yesterday but he remained in intensive care. 

Yesterday morning, more than 100 police and soldiers searched a forest zone around the Huai Labaoya to try to track down the attackers and three more soldiers were wounded. 

As of press time, just four victims were discharged from hospitals. 

“We will check which villagers left Huai Labaoya during the attacks on security officials in a bid to bring the culprits to justice,” Third Army Area deputy chief Maj-General Thana Jaruwat said yesterday. 

Most Huai Labaoya residents are from the Yao and Mien tribes. 

“The village sits amid a hilly forest. Many people here are said to have been involved in drug trafficking or smuggling,” Tambon Sanian Administrative Organisation chairman Thirapon Wanwipusit said. 

An informed source said only small-scale drug suspects lived in Huai Labaoya as bigger players usually hid in forest zones. 

“They [the bigger players] get food and water from people living in the |village,” the source said. 

The source added that with such links, residents of Huai Labaoya had usually been uncooperative when authorities came to seek information on drug suspects. 

Thana said the authorities would from now on closely check Huai Labaoya to determine which |resident had abused or trafficked illicit drugs.