POLICE and anti-narcotics officials yesterday made sweeping searches and detained four people in the hometown of young Lahu activist Chaiyapoom Pasae, who was shot dead in an extrajudicial killing in March.

Chaiyapoom had been a role-model youth before he was killed at an Army checkpoint and labelled a drug dealer, causing outrage among people who knew him personally.

Backed by court-issued warrants, Provincial Police Region 5 commissioner Pol Lt-General Poonsap Prasertsak and Chiang Mai police chief Pol Maj-General Sarayuth Sa-nguanpokai led the searches at target locations in Ban Kongpakping in Chiang Mai’s Chiang Dao district.

Detained during the raids were Chaiyapoom’s 20-year-old aunt Chantana Pasae, her 25-year-old husband Jajomsaeng Morkoo, Nasae Saekeu and Chaiyapoom’s guardian’s sister-in-law Nawa Ma-eu. All remained in custody yesterday on drug charges.

“We have evidence that Chaiyapoom was involved in drugs. At least seven witnesses have said they used to receive drugs directly from Chaiyapoom’s hands. Now some pieces of evidence have implicated these four suspects too,” Poonsap said.

According to Poonsap, most of the suspects had confessed to the drug-related crimes and all would be prosecuted.

Nasae was allegedly the owner of more than 2,000 methamphetamine tablets found in Chaiyapoom’s car on the day of his killing, while Phongsanai Saengtala – a friend who was with Chaiyapoom at the time of the extrajudicial killing – reportedly told police he saw Nawa hover around Chaiyapoom’s car before the drugs were found.

Poonsap added that Nawa’s elder sister, Naki, had been supplying illicit narcotics from Myanmar to the drug network in Thailand. An arrest warrant was being sought for Naki, he said.

However, Maitree Chamreonsuksakul, who sheltered Chaiyapoom for a long time and led him along the path of activism, said he did not think Nawa even had a sister called Naki.

“From as far as I’ve known, her sister lives in another village on the Thai side, not in Myanmar,” he said, |contradicting the police statement.

He added that local people had told him police found only about nine methamphetamine tablets at his village during the yesterday’s searches.

Maitree said he was now worried that police might try to divert public attention to away from the extrajudicial killing by raising drug allegations.

He said that more than two months after Chaiyapoom’s death, there had been little progress in the investigation into whether a soldier at the checkpoint really shot Chaiyapoom in self-defence.

“Have officials used excessive force? Why have the authorities not released recordings from CCTV cameras?” Maitree asked.

He said authorities could not focus on drug allegations against Chaiyapoom and not take action on the extrajudicial killing.

Sumitchai Hattasarn, a lawyer fighting on behalf of Chaiyapoom’s supporters, said it was important to understand that the drug case and the extrajudicial killing were two different things.

“It’s not right to say Chaiyapoom deserved to be killed because he was involved in drugs. Even if there is really evidence to suggest that he might have been a drug suspect, he should have had an opportunity to prove himself in court. To date, police have yet to produce any solid evidence to back drug charges against him,” Sumitchai said.

As for the extrajudicial killing, he said it was clear that recordings from the CCTV camera would provide crucial evidence.

“But the last time I contacted the forensic science division, I was told police were still unable to check the recordings and were in the process of waiting for the military to supply more evidence from its computer system,” the lawyer said.