BANGKOK, July 21 -- Four Iranian men were arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport for smuggling 111 packages of crystal methamphetamine with a total weight of one kilogramme. Also known as 'ice', the foursome reportedly tried to carry the crystal meth into the kingdom by swallowing the packages, customs officials told at a press briefing on Wednesday.

The drugs were estimated to have a street value of Bt3.5 million (over US$105,000)

Reza Zaferani, 27, Bagheri Esmaeil, 30, Saeid Noeparastemami, 28, and Jamshid Bayatbabolghany, 28, on Tuesday (July 20) were arrested at Thailand's main international airport after flying from the Iranian capital of Tehran.

The customs operation followed a tip-off that the traffickers would smuggle drugs into the country.

Acting on the tip, customs officials carefully inspected them and an X-ray scanner detected crystal meth in their stomachs.

They were given laxatives and total 111 packages of ice weighing 1 kg were found.

All denied any wrongdoing but an initial investigation found that Mr Esmaeil has a Thai girlfriend working at a nightclub in the eastern seaside resort of Pattaya.

Customs officials presumed that the drug dealers may have been selling 'ice' to foreign tourists and other patrons of nightclubs in Pattaya.

Initially, they were charged with possessing and smuggling the illicit drug for resale. Customs officials sent them and the seized drug to the narcotics suppression police for further investigation. (MCOT online news)