The man accused of running Asia's biggest drug trafficking syndicate has been revealed. Here's what needs to happen next
Jeremy Douglas
Updated 0608 GMT (1408 HKT) October 24, 2019

"Jeremy Douglas is the Regional Representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Southeast Asia and the Pacific. He can be followed on Twitter @jdouglasSEA. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his."

(CNN)The Sam Gor syndicate and its leader, Tse Chi Lop, stand accused of running what is arguably the biggest drug-trafficking operation in Asia's history.
They have lived largely in the shadows, with Tse allegedly running his multibillion dollar operation from Hong Kong, Macao and southeast Asia until his identity was revealed last week in an investigative piece published by Reuters.
It has been hard to watch and wait while the case against Tse has developed, knowing that he is believed to be the driving force behind the recent Asia Pacific synthetic drug surge that has ruined countless lives.

But he has been named, and the region and the world have taken note.

Authorities believe the Sam Gor syndicate has generated billions of dollars each year from the trade in methamphetamine and other synthetic drugs. If the allegations pan out, a credible case can be made that Tse has been a bigger player in the global drug trade than Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, and possibly even Colombian cartel leader Pablo Escobar.
The difference is that he has allegedly done it in a few short years, and he has been able to maintain his anonymity until now. Tse has not responded to the allegations leveled against him in the Reuters piece, and so far regional law enforcement agencies have not publicly named him on the record. But the UN Office on Drugs and Crime can confirm that Tse is being investigated for running one of the biggest drug trafficking syndicates in history.

The accusations leveled against Tse raises fundamental questions: how did he pull it off; and what can Asia learn from what has happened?

Organized crime gangs are in the business of making money. They seek the conditions they need to build, expand and profit -- and Asia has provided a perfect breeding ground.
All the necessary pieces have been in play: industries from which to obtain a steady supply of precursor chemicals and pharmaceutical products; off-the-grid territory controlled by ethnic armed groups where production can be hidden and protection provided; proximity to lucrative pre-existing and ready to develop markets; great infrastructure to move product quickly; loosely regulated high cashflow businesses like casinos and junkets to launder piles of cash; compromised governments and police forces that are not candid with each other and do not cooperate effectively; and virtually no health and social response to counter the use and harmful impacts of an ever-expanding supply.

In other words, Asia has provided the opportunity for an enterprising drug trafficker and syndicate. If the drug trade wasn't so destructive, the innovative approach allegedly used by Tse and Sam Gor might actually be something to admire.
So what does the region need to do so another kingpin does not come along and take over -- or even improve on -- what Tse and Sam Gor are accused of building so quickly and effectively?

Continued here: https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/23/opin ... index.html

I guess he is up for this then



However, as the Chinese are Masters of Disguise I am beginning to suspect the true mastermind is this old lady on the corner of my village.

The little old Chinese lady and her tea get around. 44kg of meth was caught today on its way to Bangkok, all wrapped in Chinese tea bags.

Anthony's Weiner wrote: ↑Thu Oct 24, 2019 5:00 pm
The little old Chinese lady and her tea get around. 44kg of meth was caught today on its way to Bangkok, all wrapped in Chinese tea bags.

Mehhhh - the old chinese tea lady mastermind says 'it's a drop in the ocean' She's got it covered bro...

According to the Reuters article, the difference in the cost price and the retail price overseas means that the syndicate can afford to lose a percentage of the traffic. Looking at the massive amounts of methamphetamine seized by police in SEA recently, you can only speculate on how much of the drug is getting through to street consumers in Australia, New Zealand, and Asian countries.

The UNODC estimates the Asia-Pacific retail market for meth is worth between $30.3 and $61.4 billion annually. The business model for meth is “very different” to heroin, said the UNODC’s Douglas. “Inputs are relatively cheap, a large workforce is not needed, the price per kilo is higher, and profits are therefore far, far higher."

The wholesale price of a kilo of crystal meth produced in northeastern Myanmar is as little as $1,800, according to a UNODC report citing the China National Narcotics Control Commission. Average retail prices for crystal meth, according to the UN agency, are equivalent to $70,500 per kilo in Thailand, $298,000 per kilo in Australia and $588,000 in Japan. For the Japanese market, that’s more than a three-hundred-fold mark-up.

The money the syndicate is making “means that if they lose ten tonnes and one goes through, they still make a big profit,” said the Chinese counter-narcotics official. “They can afford failure. It doesn’t matter.”

https://www.reuters.com/investigates/sp ... syndicate/

CEOCambodiaNews wrote: ↑Thu Oct 24, 2019 5:52 pm According to the Reuters article, the difference in the cost price and the retail price overseas means that the syndicate can afford to lose a percentage of the traffic. Looking at the massive amounts of methamphetamine seized by police in SEA recently, you can only speculate on how much of the drug is getting through to street consumers in Australia, New Zealand, and Asian countries.

The UNODC estimates the Asia-Pacific retail market for meth is worth between $30.3 and $61.4 billion annually. The business model for meth is “very different” to heroin, said the UNODC’s Douglas. “Inputs are relatively cheap, a large workforce is not needed, the price per kilo is higher, and profits are therefore far, far higher."

The wholesale price of a kilo of crystal meth produced in northeastern Myanmar is as little as $1,800, according to a UNODC report citing the China National Narcotics Control Commission. Average retail prices for crystal meth, according to the UN agency, are equivalent to $70,500 per kilo in Thailand, $298,000 per kilo in Australia and $588,000 in Japan. For the Japanese market, that’s more than a three-hundred-fold mark-up.

The money the syndicate is making “means that if they lose ten tonnes and one goes through, they still make a big profit,” said the Chinese counter-narcotics official. “They can afford failure. It doesn’t matter.”

https://www.reuters.com/investigates/sp ... syndicate/

They can accept failure but it sure meese up the drug mules day

Isaanbarang wrote: ↑Thu Oct 24, 2019 5:55 pm
They can accept failure but it sure meese up the drug mules day

Speaking of which - facing the firing squad or the gallows for bring meth into Bali..



and this



and this

So the mastermind Tse Chi Lop is not only an old Chinese Tea Lady but a Canuck!!

Dunno why his details are blurred out - don't the authorities want to catch him

Mishmash wrote: ↑Thu Oct 24, 2019 6:27 pm So the mastermind Tse Chi Lop is not only an old Chinese Tea Lady but a Canuck!!

Dunno why his details are blurred out - don't the authorities want to catch him

As reported in AW 's original post. Born in China but with Canadian citizenship, served time in the US and now based in Macau.

Isaanbarang wrote: ↑Thu Oct 24, 2019 6:50 pm
As reported in AW 's original post. Born in China but with Canadian citizenship, served time in the US and now based in Macau.

And the blurred bit is for??? privacy???

Macau is a tiny island for god's sake and they can't find him???