Kenyan with 68 cocaine packets in his stomach arrested in Thailand

A Kenyan man was on Wednesday arrested by Thailand authorities for allegedly trying to smuggle cocaine into the country at Bangkok airport.

According to Thailand based CNA News,  Glenn Chibasellow Ooko had swallowed 68 packets of cocaine and flown from Ethiopia on Monday.

The 43-year-old then proceeded to Suvarnabhumi airport in Thailand where the suspicious contents of his stomach were detected.

CNA News said x-ray photos provided by the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) showed rectangular objects.

It turned out to be 68 cocaine packets weighing 1.2 kilograms.

Thai police reportedly also arrested Osita Joseph Ukpa, a Nigerian national who is alleged to have hired him to smuggle the drugs.

Drug trafficking is a capital offence in Thailand and is punishable by death.

Despite this, Thailand still serves as a popular transit point for smugglers of methamphetamine (meth).

According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, the powerful, highly addictive stimulant affects the central nervous system and can cause brain damage.

The Thai trade route is used because of its porous borders which  CNA News says makes it easier for transnational crime networks to smuggle drugs though Myanmar and Laos before moving to other countries.