The Bhutanese Leading the way.
A 43-year-old Sonam Tobgay from Haa was apprehended on 17th December 2024 by Chinese border authorities while trying to smuggle in a tightly packed consignment into Tibet (China).
It now appears that the consignment was around 900 grams or almost a kilo of ‘brown-sugar’ or heroin.
The type of drugs and the quantity is important because under Chinese law anybody smuggling any heroin of 50 grams or more are liable to be sentenced to 15 years imprisonment, life imprisonment or death.
The quantity is important because China in the recent past has not hesitated to execute foreigners for trying to bring in large quantities of drugs including those bringing in heroin.
In 2023 August, China executed a South Korean national for being in possession of 5 kilograms of methamphetamine. In December 2023 China executed two Filipinos for drug trafficking. In both the above cases high level appeals by respective governments went unheeded.
In April 2022 two Myanmar Nationals, in March 2021 two Cambodian Nationals and in February 2020 two Laotian Nationals were all executed for attempting to smuggle drugs into China.
In January 2019 two Vietnamese Nationals, in December 2018 two Thai nationals and two Indonesian Nationals in November 2017 were executed for trying to smuggle drugs.
In October 2016 two Malaysian Nationals, in September 2015 two Nigerian Nationals, in August 2014 three South Korean Nationals and in July 2014 four Japanese Nationals were all executed for trying to smuggle drugs.
In 2013, Naw Kham, a Burmese drug lord was executed for his involvement in the 2011 Mekong River massacre, which resulted in the deaths of 13 Chinese sailors.
In 2011 three Filipino nationals were executed all for smuggling heroin separately. Sally Ordinario-Villanueva for smuggling four kilograms of heroin, Ramon Credo for smuggling four kilograms of heroin and Elizabeth Batain was executed for smuggling almost seven kilograms of heroin.
In 2010 five Japanese nationals were executed for attempting to struggle drugs.
In 2009 Akmal Shaikh a British citizen was executed for smuggling heroin, despite appeals citing his mental health condition.
In 2019 Robert Lloyd Schellenberg a Canadian citizen was sentenced to death for attempting to smuggle over 222 kilograms of methamphetamine.
According to sources, Sonam is a simple yak herder and the Royal Bhutan Police arrest and interrogation of his accomplices in Bhutan show that Sonam and the two others who went to Tibet were not aware what was in the tightly wrapped package.
Two accomplices, aged 27 and 34, who were traveling with him, managed to evade arrest and returned to Haa the following day.
The arrest came to light when the suspect’s sister lodged a complaint with the Haa police on 19th December, after learning about her brother’s detention from the two accomplices who had returned.
In response, Haa police arrested the two accomplices.
Upon interrogation, they revealed the names of others involved, which led to the arrests of 7 individuals connected to the case. The arrested individuals included those responsible for procuring the illicit substance from India, coordinators, and carriers— all of whom are Bhutanese nationals.
Later, after the initial interrogation, many of them revealed that they were not aware of the content inside the package. The two individuals revealed that they were asked by two other coordinators that the small consignment which was tightly packed was to be delivered in Tibet.
Among those arrested was a 40-year-old suspect who confessed to receiving orders from a 23-year-old man, believed to be the mastermind behind the smuggling operation. According to the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP), a total of nine individuals have been identified in connection with the case. So far, seven have been arrested, excluding the individual detained at the border and the alleged ringleader, who remains at large.
Sonam is married and has children.
This paper contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade (MoFAET) and was told to contact the Home Ministry.
The Home Ministry only has as much information as the RBP gave them and there is no way for the ministry to directly contact counterparts in China. A senior Home Ministry official said the MoFAET will be the only ministry that will have the right to get involved in this case which has happened in a foreign country.
China is one of the 34 countries in the world that has the death penalty for drug offences. China is considered the worlds leading executioner overall, including for drug related executions, but figures are not released and considered a state secret.
China also takes a tough stance on drugs going back to history with the Opium wars of the mid-19th century when Britain and China fought when the latter tried to suppress the Opium trade in China. The wars resulted in the legalization of Opium and other treaties which China considers as the start of China’s ‘Century of Humiliation,’ till 1945.
