Lao police have busted a gang of amphetamine users and dealers in Nongtha Neua village in Vientiane's Chanthabouly district, detaining 141 people.
Head of Chanthabouly Police Office, Lieutenant Colonel Khamphai Phom-machith, told Vientiane Times on Thursday that once they've been questioned and educated the drug users will be handed over to their families.
The operation took place on Tuesday after district police received information on drug use and trafficking.
The police searched the house of Khek in Nongtha Neua village and found 43 amphetamine tablets.
Following the raid, the police set up a road block down the street and stopped and searched motorists for amphetamines.
Colonel Khamphai said police stopped 162 people, four of whom were found in possession of amphetamines. A further 136 confessed they were heading to buy the drug from Khek.
Most of those detained were teenage males who were either students or unemployed.
The largest number of detainees came from Chanthabouly district, followed by Xaythany and Sikhottabong districts.
Police found almost 300 amphetamine tablets in total on the four men detained in possession. They included Hatthakone, 16, of Nongtha Neua village, Sengsombat, 26, of Phonsavang village, Phoumasone, 16, of Nongtha Neua village, and Sathieng of Phonsavang village, all in Chanthabouly district.
The four men remain in police custody and have been charged with drug trafficking.
They will be sentenced according to the law if they are found guilty.
Meanwhile, most of the 136 drug users were handed over to their families on Wednesday.
Drug use and trafficking are on the rise in Vientiane despite police efforts to crack down on these gangs.
In February, the police busted another gang in Huayhong village in Vientiane's Chanthabouly district, detaining 113 drug users and two dealers. In July, police arrested 100 drug users and dealers in Sidamduan village in the same district.
In September, Chanthabouly district police arrested Vatthana Tonngeun (known as Mou), 32, in Huayhong village after searching his house and finding 2,826 amphetamine tablets.
The man confessed he had been selling the drug to youths in Dongpalaep village, Chanthabouly district, for several years.
Also in September, the police arrested drug dealer Ekalak who had 6,000 amphetamine tablets and a gun in his possession.
The police apprehended him in Khualuang village following a motorbike chase as he tried to resist arrest.
Khamphai said the villages of Huayhong, Dondaeng and Nongtha are considered a red zone for drug users and trafficking in Chanthabouly district due to the number of rental apartments in which drug users and dealers live
