'Growing and Selling Marijuana Directly'... Court Sentences Suspended Imprisonment with Minimum Term Deviation

Man Who Aided Daily Wage Earner's Escape Also Given Probation
Recommended Sentence Was Imprisonment, But...
"Showing Remorse and Considering Family's Leniency"

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] A man in his 30s, indicted for manufacturing and selling drugs with accomplices, was sentenced to a suspended prison term in the first trial. The court also handed down the same sentence to another man who was tried together for aiding the escape of the group.

According to the legal community on the 9th, the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 33 (Presiding Judge Noh Hoseong) sentenced A (38) to 2 years and 6 months in prison with a 4-year suspension for violating the Narcotics Control Act (marijuana). B (38), who was charged with aiding a criminal and destroying evidence, was sentenced to 6 months in prison with a 1-year suspension.

Meticulous Role Division... 20 Million KRW Criminal Proceeds in One Month

A was indicted for cultivating marijuana with three accomplices at a guesthouse in Seogwipo City, Jeju, for about a month starting February last year, and selling it through the dark web. A is also accused of smuggling 'hashish oil,' a narcotic imported from overseas, and manufacturing and selling marijuana liquid for electronic cigarettes. The group meticulously divided roles such as posting advertisements for drug sales and securing supply sources to commit the crime. Under this role division, they sold narcotics 36 times and earned criminal proceeds amounting to 20 million KRW within a month.

B was accused of helping accomplices who had not been arrested to escape by informing them of the situation when some members of A’s group were arrested in March of that year and pursued by investigators. Thanks to B’s help, the accomplices evaded the authorities’ pursuit and destroyed evidence by discarding marijuana being cultivated in Jeju.

Seoul Central District Court / Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

Court: "The nature of the crime is neither good nor light, but..."

The court pointed out regarding A, "Crimes related to narcotics have a very negative impact on society as they devastate people’s bodies and minds," and "The nature of the crime of manufacturing marijuana and marijuana liquid with accomplices and selling them through advertisements is not good." The recommended sentencing range according to the sentencing guidelines for the charges against A was 3 to 6 years in prison, which corresponds to an actual prison term.

However, the court judged that A’s criminal facts were relatively lighter than those of other accomplices and sentenced him to a suspended sentence below the lower limit of the sentencing guidelines. The court explained the sentencing reason, saying, "A is a joint principal offender who joined the crime later than other accomplices and to a relatively lesser degree," and "Considering that his family promised to guide him and petitioned for leniency."

Regarding B, the court also pointed out, "This is a crime that makes it difficult to discover the substantive truth in criminal cases and obstructs the national criminal justice process, so the nature of the crime is by no means light." However, considering that B admitted the crime, showed remorse, and had no prior convictions of the same kind, the execution of the sentence was suspended.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.