Brit fugitive who fled to Thailand arrested after two years on the run

This is the moment a British fugitive and suspected drug trafficker is arrested in Thailand after spending two years on the run. 

Ben Stephen Ransome, 28, had been living in luxury on holiday island Phuket until his arrest at a restaurant in the Rawai district on September 2.

He was suspected of being a member of a drug trafficking gang and had reportedly fled to Thailand in 2022 to escape a lengthy sentence.

Thailand’s Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) said Ben’s arrest came following a request from the UK’s National Crime Agency for his extradition.

Police launched an investigation and found that Ben had a luxury condominium and a pool villa near Rawai Beach in the Mueang district of Phuket.

Ben Stephen Ransome, 28, from the UK was arrested at a restaurant in Thailand after being on the run for two years on alleged drug charges

The suspected member of a drug trafficking gang (far right) reinvented himself in Thailand as a professional boxer 

Ransome was suspected of being a member of a drug trafficking gang and had reportedly fled to Thailand in 2022 to escape a lengthy sentence

The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) said Ben’s arrest came following a request from the UK’s National Crime Agency for his extradition

By the time he was caught, he had reinvented himself from a drug dealer to a professional boxer. 

Ben remained in Phuket had competed as a prizefighter in local boxing matches under the alias ‘Billy Roberts’.

Officials detained him for ‘conspiracy to supply Class A drugs (cocaine and heroin), conspiracy to supply Class B drugs (ketamine), and conspiracy to acquire or possess criminal property’.

He was taken to Bangkok for further legal proceedings but denied all charges during questioning.

CIB Commissioner Police Lieutenant General Jirapop Phuridet said: ‘We handed the British man over to the International Affairs Department of the Office of the Attorney-General.

‘He has denied the charges, but we are preparing to deport him back to the UK.’

Ben is being held in custody while a deportation flight is organised.

It comes after another Brit was was arrested in March by Chiang Mai police for selling drugs to other foreign visitors in the area.

Charly Garcia, 48, had been living in Thailand on a student visa and faced the death penalty after an undercover police officer, it was reported, arranged to meet Garcia in a cannabis shop on March 12 seeking to buy cocaine, ketamine, magic mushrooms, LSD and ecstasy with a street value of £2,400.

Once he received the cash, Thai police then stormed the room and arrested Garcia.

In the same month, British father-of-one Stephen Mullady was arrested by Thai police for alleged cocaine dealing, with cops discovering an assortment of illegal substances and drug paraphernalia in his hotel room.

Charly Garcia, 48, from London, pictured, was arrested in Chaing Mai in March on suspicion of possessing drugs with intent to supply – an offence which can carry the death penalty in Thailand

Stephen Mullady, 45, from Ascot , Berkshire, was drinking with friends when cops raided his hotel room on the upmarket island of Phuket on March 18

Jamie Louis Swain (pictured), 29, from Enfield, north London was allegedly caught with a bag of cocaine hidden in his passport by Thai immigration staff in May

Officers allegedly found 2.4g of the drug along with three weighing scales and 104 small plastic bags used to separate the powder. The officers claimed they also seized small amounts of methamphetamine and crystal meth in the 45-year-old’s room.

In May, British tourist Jamie Louis Swain faced up to 20 years in a Thai prison after he was allegedly caught with a bag of cocaine hidden in his passport by immigration staff.

When he handed his passport to an immigration officer, the cop noticed a small plastic bag with white powder inside when flicking through the document to find an empty page to place the visa stamp. 

Officers said that Swain reacted with surprise, before he started swearing and shaking, prompting authorities to conduct further inspections and scanning his luggage.

He was arrested at Phuket International Airport, where police tested the substance found in his passport and confirmed it was 0.42 grams of cocaine.