Thailand Bail has won its year-long drug case in the Bangkok Criminal Court today, bringing further validation to our strategy with seemingly impossible drug cases in Thailand. Ask any law firm in Thailand about their feelings for drug cases – many lawyers will not even accept drug cases because they are difficult. Other lawyers take on drug cases but do not know how to formulate a proper defense. Today’s win in the Ratchada court verifies the defense we put together for our client, a Russian national. For those who have drug cases

in Thailand, this is an important real-life story to read.

FIGHTING A LIFE SENTENCE

Since being arrested in 2014, Mr. Sergei Koslov (this is not his real name, which has been concealed for privacy and legal reasons) was up against a life sentence in a Thai prison for selling a class 1 drug, possessing a class 5 drug, and also being in Thailand illegally. Things did not look good when we took on the case in 2014, as bail was denied, due to the enormous amount of drugs that were found in the Pattaya apartment where Sergei was staying with his Thai girlfriend. When the police set up an undercover operation to make the drug bust, Sergei was sitting on the bed, with marijuana on the bedside table. The police has used a confidential informant to provide information that Sergei was operating with his Thai girlfriend, selling crystal methamphetamine. Crystal methamphetamine, locally known as ya-ice, was found in the apartment, weighing in at more than 80 grams, which is 4 times the legal limit for an automatic life sentence in a Thai jail (note: anything over 20g of crystal methamphetamine is given a life sentence).

DRUG CASES IN THAILAND

Drug cases in Thailand are notoriously difficult to fight. The police typically set up well thought-out plans to make arrests using confidential informants (CI), which are locally known as spies or sai-rap. The confidential informant in our cases gave testimony that the police in Pattaya had been surveilling the apartment where Sergei stayed with his Thai girlfriend, and used a trusted drug buyer to go and purchase crystal methamphetamine from the apartment where Sergei was staying with his Thai girlfriend. It is important to understand that an actual drug sale did happen at this apartment, and the police immediately rushed in, arrested the 2 defendants and searched the apartment, finding the 80+ grams of crystal methamphetamine, the marijuana, and other items which were seized. This made for a very challenging drug case for Thailand Bail, but we saw a path through the confusion, and explained our ideas to Sergei’s family, who had flown into Thailand to see their son and choose a lawyer to defend him in court. What we proposed made sense to the family, and Thailand Bail was chosen in favor of other law firms in Thailand. After bail was denied several times, we knew we had to shift focus to the criminal defense aspect of the case, which we took on in 2014.

THE OTHER DEFENDANT

The other defendant in this case, a Thai national, received a life sentence in prison, which was reduced to 27 years and 6 months for the crimes she was convicted of. This is a stark contrast in sentencing – our client Sergei ended up receiving 6 months in prison (he has already served 12 waiting for trial), which amounts to his case being completed. It should be noted that the second defendant (his Thai girlfriend) did not have a lawyer representing her interests in court, and had to use a public defender in court, who never went to visit her or talk to her about her defense options. Instead, she decided to plead guilty to all charges, which effectively cut her sentence in half.

LESSONS LEARNED

This case adds to Thailand Bail’s winning achievements in the Bangkok Criminal Court as well as other provincial courts throughout Thailand. Finding a Thai law firm with international experience and expertise to handle a large drug case is difficult, and it is extremely important to choose the right law firm. This latest win in the court, helping our Russian client avoid life in prison, validates and confirms our strategy regarding major drug cases in Thailand.

If you have a drug case in Thailand, no matter how big or small, contact Thailand Bail to receive free general advice on drug cases in Thailand. If we agree to work together on your drug case in Thailand, we will fully explain our strategy and why we believe it will work for your drug case in Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, Chiang Mai, Hua Hin, Koh Samui, or elsewhere in Thailand.