Recently, South Korea has been rocked by a series of major drug cases, ranging from the discovery of large quantities of a new type of drug called “K Meth” along the Jeju coast to a widespread “throw-and-go” ice drug distribution network in the capital region. The drug issue is showing a trend of regional and transnational organization, sparking societal concern.
According to the Jeju Provincial Maritime Police Department on November 8th, in the past two months, a significant amount of ketamine, known as a new type of drug, has been discovered consecutively on the Jeju coast, with a large scale but unclear source.
It was reported that ketamine was first discovered on October 7th when a sanitation worker cleaning garbage on the beach in the city of Seogwipo found a sack containing 20 packages labeled with the word “tea,” each containing approximately 1 kilogram of white powder. After being identified by the National Forensic Service, it was confirmed to be ketamine. Calculated at a single dosage of 0.03 grams, it could supply around 660,000 people to use simultaneously, with an estimated market value of about 6 billion Korean won.
Subsequently, anglers and local residents successively found ketamine on four coasts in Jeju City, specifically on October 24th in Yagae-myeon (west), October 31st in Jaetian-myeon (northeast), November 1st at the Jeju Port in Geonip-dong (north), and November 4th in Sinchon-ri, Jaetian-myeon.
However, many questions remain unanswered regarding the origin, means, and reasons for the drugs’ presence. Despite the Maritime Police conducting simulations using a sea current prediction system, they have yet to determine the drug’s movement paths. Additionally, there were no suspicious vessel activities recorded on the AIS (Automatic Identification System) before and after the discovery of ketamine.
Authorities have not ruled out the possibility of involvement in drug trafficking organizations and have therefore requested extensive international cooperation from the United States FBI, DEA, as well as China, Japan, Taiwan, and Southeast Asian countries.
Almost simultaneously with the large-scale drug drift case in Jeju, a cross-border ice drug distribution case known as the “throw-and-go” method was cracked down on in Seoul and its surrounding areas.
On November 11th, the Seoul Metropolitan Police announced the arrest of 122 suspects (56 for trafficking and 66 for purchasing or using drugs), all of whom were transferred to the prosecutor’s office, with 56 individuals being detained. The police seized 1,660 grams of ice drugs, which could supply 55,000 people, and confiscated equipment such as baseball bats, kitchen knives, walkie-talkies used for escaping law enforcement resistance, as well as 29.5 million Korean won in criminal proceeds.
Police investigations revealed that the network was remotely controlled by a Chinese ringleader, Mr. A (44 years old), with carriers mainly of Korean descent. They followed instructions to distribute ice drugs in mailboxes or hidden locations in residential areas around the capital, a total of 3,047 times, earning rewards ranging from 10,000 to 20,000 Korean won each time.
Some suspects attempted to evade arrest by illegally entering Korea via ships or threatening detectives with knives when being pursued by the police. The organization utilized locations like temples with fewer installed CCTV cameras, fishing spots, and deserted mountains to exchange drugs. After the transactions, they deleted SNS messages, received rewards through online payments in China or cash, using the “throw-and-go” method to avoid police detection.
After a three-year investigation, authorities had previously apprehended 37 key members of the network and confiscated 9 kilograms of ice drugs (with a market value of 30 billion Korean won). Upon obtaining intelligence indicating the ringleader’s intentions to rebuild the sales chain, undercover transactions and supplementary investigations were conducted, leading to the successful arrest of 122 individuals. Mr. A has now been issued a red notice by Interpol.
Police urge the public not to touch any suspicious objects found on the coast and to report them immediately. They also emphasized the ongoing focus on combating large-scale drug crime networks.