US authorities revealed yesterday that they have arrested three Thai men and a Japanese yakuza organised crime leader in New York City on April 4 – 5. The men are accused of trafficking heroin and methamphetamine, as well as attempting to acquire surface-to-air missiles for rebel groups in Myanmar and Sri Lanka.
Takeshi Ebizawa, Sompak Raksaranee, Somphop Sigsiri and Suksan Chulanan were arrested on drug and arms trafficking and money laundering charges, according to the US Department of Justice. The men have been under investigation by US Drug Enforcement Administration agents in Thailand since 2019 since they attempted to sell an undercover agent large quantities of heroin and methamphetamine from Myanmar’s rebel group the United Wa State Army, or UWSA.
Japanese yakuza leader Takeshi Ebizawa planned to buy automatic weapons, rockets, machine guns and surface-to-air missiles…
