Drug smuggling disguised as health supplements... Incheon police arrest 82 Thai nationals

by Park Haesook

Published 07 Jun.2023 11:55(KST)

Thai nationals who smuggled drugs disguised as health functional foods and sold and used them domestically were arrested in large numbers by the police.

On the 7th, the Metropolitan Investigation Unit of Incheon Police Agency announced that they had arrested A (45), the mastermind of the drug smuggling, on charges of psychotropic substances under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes.

Additionally, 48 people including B (35), who were responsible for domestic sales, were arrested on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act, and 33 users were booked without detention.

They are suspected of smuggling 1,970 tablets of the drug "Yaba," disguised as capsule-type health functional foods, from Thailand via international mail and distributing them domestically from January last year to last month.

The domestic sales agents were investigated to have hidden the drugs at specific locations in places such as Seosan, Chungnam; Hwaseong, Gyeonggi; Jeongeup, Jeonbuk; and Daegu, and distributed them using a so-called "throwing" method, where the location was informed to buyers, or through face-to-face transactions via introductions.

Most drug buyers were Thai nationals working in agriculture and livestock or as day laborers, and it was revealed that they purchased the drugs at 30,000 to 50,000 KRW per tablet.

According to the police investigation, the mastermind A came to Korea in August 2014 under a visa waiver program, and after his stay expired, he disguised his identity using forged foreigner registration cards and driver's licenses. He avoided the investigation by delivering drug packages received via international mail to the residences of other Thai nationals for storage.

A police official stated, "Through joint investigations with the National Intelligence Service, we have arrested a large number of smugglers, sellers, and users," and added, "We will continue to strengthen crackdowns on Thai-based masterminds and foreign drug offenders to prevent the spread of narcotics."