Mae Sot: Soldiers from the Rajamangala Task Force, along with Mae Sot Police Station and Mae Sot Customs, intercepted a truck smuggling oil across the border to Myanmar, amid a severe oil shortage in Myawaddy.
According to Thai News Agency, officers inspected a cargo truck, a Mitsubishi Caton with registration number 7P-3398 KYN-7, carrying Myanmar goods at the border checkpoint near the 2nd Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge. The truck was found to have six 200-liter plastic drums, two 30-liter drums, and three 5-liter drums filled with oil, concealed beneath boxes and crates of fresh food. The driver, Mr. Rain Rain, a 36-year-old Myanmar national with a temporary border pass, was arrested for questioning. It was discovered that he had been hired for 8,000 baht to purchase oil in Thailand and transport it to Myanmar, mixed with consumer goods and fresh food. Legal proceedings have been initiated against him at Mae Sot Customs.
Officials are enforcing strict controls at the Mae Sot to Myawaddy border crossing, as ordered by the Tak governor, to prevent the smuggling of oil and consumer goods at 59 border crossings in Mae Sot District, Tak Province, to Myawaddy City in Myanmar. This has resulted in a severe oil shortage in Myawaddy City. Residents of Myawaddy City are reportedly driving across the Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge 1 to refuel on the Thai side, as gas stations in Myawaddy City are nearly depleted and prices are steep, with diesel at 63 baht per liter and gasoline at nearly 60 baht per liter. The shortage is due to a temporary suspension of oil exports from Thailand for almost a week.