A 53-year-old Lao national was charged with cross-border drug smuggling yesterday after he allegedly brought nearly 4,000 amphetamine pills into Stung Treng’s Thala Barivat district. Kim Son, deputy police chief of the provincial anti-drug bureau, said Phum Machak Say Samon is suspected of bringing in the drugs. “The police had a difficult time arresting him because he used a variety of tricks and a network of smugglers to evade law enforcement,” he said.