Busan District Prosecutors' Office Arrests and Indicts Largest Ever Methamphetamine Smuggling Suspect... Estimated Street Value of 1.3 Trillion Won

A total of 135 bags of methamphetamine seized by the prosecution, with a total weight of approximately 404.23 kg. Photo by Busan District Prosecutors' Office

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, Legal Affairs Specialist] It was confirmed on the 1st that the prosecution, through cooperation with customs, the National Intelligence Service, and overseas agencies, has uncovered and prosecuted the largest-ever methamphetamine smuggling case.

The Anti-Corruption and Violent Crime Division of the Busan District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Choi Hyuk) announced on the 1st that they had arrested and indicted drug offender A (35) on July 3rd last month for violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (psychotropic substances) after identifying him as having smuggled more than 404.23 kg of methamphetamine from Mexico in two instances in December 2019 and July last year.

The prosecution also stated that they have obtained an arrest warrant for the main suspect B (male, Australian nationality), who instructed A to commit the crime while residing overseas, and are currently tracking him through an Interpol red notice request.

A is accused of conspiring with B to smuggle more than 404.23 kg of methamphetamine concealed within a total of 20 helical gears imported from Mexico. (A helical gear is a cylindrical gear with twisted teeth cut around the wheel, used in reduction devices or power transmission. In this case, the parts were used in aircraft reduction devices.)

The prosecution reported that in addition to approximately 404.23 kg of methamphetamine hidden in nine helical gears seized domestically last July, it is estimated that about 500 kg of methamphetamine, presumed to have been smuggled to Australia earlier this year, was also involved, totaling approximately 904 kg of smuggled methamphetamine.

The 404.23 kg of methamphetamine seized by the prosecution is enough for about 13.5 million simultaneous doses, with a retail value of approximately 1.3 trillion KRW (based on a retail price of 100,000 KRW per 0.03g dose).

Among cases detected domestically so far, the largest smuggling amount was 112 kg of methamphetamine seized in 2018; the amount seized this time is nearly four times greater.

This investigation was triggered by the Australian Federal Police's seizure in May of about 500 kg of methamphetamine smuggled from Mexico to Korea and then re-exported to Australia.

The image shows methamphetamine concealed inside a helical gear. Photo by Busan District Prosecutors' Office

The methamphetamine concealed in helical gears imported from Mexico and then re-exported to Australia, using Korea as a transit point, was detected by Australian customs, revealing a three-country methamphetamine smuggling operation.

The prosecution emphasized that this case was not simply a transshipment (reloading) of machine parts with hidden methamphetamine but an unusual smuggling case that went through formal customs clearance procedures.

From the early stages of the investigation, the Busan Main Customs Office and the Busan District Prosecutors' Office's "Large-scale Drug Smuggling Case Task Force" coordinated their investigation, with cooperation also established with the National Intelligence Service and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

The Busan District Prosecutors' Office stated, "In cooperation with the Korea Customs Service, the National Intelligence Service, and overseas agencies, we will promptly secure the custody of the accomplices who led the crime and conduct thorough and swift investigations into additional crimes and other accomplices."

They added, "Going forward, based on strong cooperation with related agencies such as the Korea Customs Service and the National Intelligence Service, we will thoroughly block the domestic importation of methamphetamine and other narcotics."

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