Minors Also Administered Drugs... 40-Year-Old Mastermind Who Smuggled and Distributed Narcotics Sent to Prosecution (Comprehensive)

A group of 74 people, including distributors and users, who smuggled drugs from the Philippines disguised as adult products and distributed them in large quantities, were arrested by the police. Among the arrested users and distributors, there were also minors, revealing that drug use is rapidly spreading among the general public in South Korea.

Park Wonsik, Chief of the Criminal Division at Yongsan Police Station, is briefing on the case in which the mastermind of an organization was arrested for smuggling and distributing drugs from the Philippines to Korea on the 12th. Photo by Yonhap News

On the 12th, the Yongsan Police Station in Seoul announced that they had arrested a total of 14 people, including the organization leader Mr. A (48, male) and distributors and sellers, on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act, and detained 8 of them. They are suspected of smuggling drugs into the country from the Philippines disguised as adult products since February last year. Domestically, they recruited distributors and sellers through social networking services (SNS) by advertising "high-paying part-time jobs" and sold drugs.

Mr. A, who was sent to the Seoul Western District Prosecutors' Office that morning, got into a vehicle wearing a black hoodie and covering his face. He remained silent in response to reporters' questions such as "Is there a separate leader in the Philippines?" and "How many accomplices are involved in the organization?"

This group smuggled and sold drugs from the Philippines over four months from November 2021 to February last year. Mr. A smuggled narcotics into the country and recruited young adults with limited financial means as distributors and sellers. To evade investigation, he operated the sales organization in a multi-level network structure and paid activity expenses by leaving cash in unattended luggage lockers at express bus terminals or by giving virtual currency. Approximately 220 million KRW worth of transactions were made using virtual currency.

Nearly Half of Users Are First-Time Offenders... Investigation Expands to Higher-Ups

Conversation content between a drug distributor and the boss through social networking service (SNS) while going to perform the 'throwing method.' / Provided by Seoul Yongsan Police Station

Among the 58 drug users arrested by the police, 27 were first-time offenders. Only 8 were habitual users, indicating that most started using drugs out of curiosity. The majority of users were in their 20s and 30s, totaling 45 people. Among the distributors and users, there were also minors?1 distributor and 4 users.

They traded drugs using a method called the "throwing method." The throwing method is a transaction where the seller and buyer do not meet directly; the seller leaves the drugs at a designated location, and the buyer picks them up.

The police began their investigation after arresting a seller distributing drugs in the Yongsan district of Seoul in February last year. The seller, who was distributing drugs in the Yongsan area, surrendered to the police. As the investigation expanded, the police identified Mr. A by arresting distributors who supplied drugs to the sellers and those managing the funds. Mr. A, who left for the Philippines in 2019, was placed on an Interpol wanted list in September last year. Through joint investigations by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Interpol team and Yongsan Police Station, Mr. A was captured at a hideout in the Philippines one month after being wanted. On the 4th, Mr. A was extradited to South Korea and was detained two days later.

The police plan to expand the investigation to higher-ups. They believe that Mr. B, who is currently residing in the Philippines, ultimately received the profits. It is known that Mr. A began the crime after Mr. B, whom he met in the Philippines, proposed a drug-related business. The police will request an Interpol warrant for Mr. B and push for his forced extradition. Additionally, they plan to investigate domestic trading companies that may have been involved in the process of drugs entering the country.

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