Drug Warlord’s Daughter Released

The eldest daughter of Burmese opium warlord Khun Sa has been freed after prosecutors dropped money-laundering charges against her.

Apawee Apitummakoob, 40, was arrested in Hong Kong on May 8 and charged with helping her father launder $4.2 million in drug money. She was freed Monday.

Prosecutor Lynda Shine said evidence was lacking and the suspect could no longer be legally held.

Authorities accused Apitummakoob - one of Khun Sa’s 30 children - of transferring money from banks in Japan to Thailand through a remittance center in Hong Kong.

The centers, although unlicensed, are not illegal and police could not prove the money came from drug trafficking, Superintendent Steve Carruthers of the Narcotics Bureau said Tuesday.