Two top prison officials in southern Myanmar’s Tanintharyi Region are facing narcotics and arms possession charges after regime authorities found stashes of cannabis, stimulants, and ammunition at their houses this month.
Junta police and other authorities raided the homes of Dawei Prison superintendent Aung Naing Pe and his deputy Thurein Tun on August 14, and have since charged the duo with unlawfully “accepting” drugs, “concealing” drug offenders, and possessing weapons without legal permission.
The prison chiefs were charged under Section 18 (b) and (c) of the 1993 Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Law as well as Section 23 (a) of the newly enacted Firearms Law, according to official letters shown to Myanmar Now. The charges carry a maximum sentence of 23 years in prison.
The arrests and raids followed the inspection by the junta’s regional minister for security and border affairs, colonel Thein Lin, at the Dawei Prison in July.
The arrests and raids followed an inspection of Dawei Prison carried out by the regional minister for security and border affairs, Col. Thein Lin, in July. The inspection team found drugs and mobile phones in the possession of some of the prison’s inmates, which led to the interrogation of some prison staff members.
A story published in the regional news outlet Dawei Watch on Sunday claimed junta authorities had replaced almost all staff at the facility and had restricted parcel deliveries to inmates following these incidents.
The Tanintharyi Times, another regional news outlet, reported on Sunday that around 10 prison staff members, including a medical officer, had received prison sentences in recent weeks.
The doctor received an 11-month sentence for “selling” drugs inside Dawei Prison, according to the report. Also among those convicted were guards responsible for security at the prison entrance and employees assigned to the prison’s mail delivery room, with sentences ranging from six to 12 months, the Tanintharyi Times added.
Col. Thein Lin was removed from his position a day after the raids on the superintendent’s and deputy’s homes, although reportedly not in connection with the seizure of the drugs and weapons. Some local media outlets reported that he had been detained for alleged corruption involving six of Tanintharyi’s top businessmen.
