A group that attempted to smuggle and distribute 1.22 million doses of cocaine disguised as wall plaster in connection with international drug organizations has been brought to trial.
The Incheon District Prosecutors' Office's Serious Crimes Investigation Division (Director General Park Seong-min) said on the 22nd that it has arrested and indicted five individuals, including a Canadian national identified as A (55, male), on charges of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes and the Narcotics Control Act. The domestic manufacturer, identified as B (34, male), is already on trial for other crimes, and additional charges have been filed against them. Also, B's girlfriend, identified as C (28), has been indicted without detention on charges of aiding in cocaine manufacturing (aiding violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes). For four accomplices who have fled overseas, an Interpol red notice has been issued.
A and the group were indicted for smuggling liquid cocaine from Colombia to Busan Port from July 2020 to May 2021 and attempting to manufacture and distribute solid cocaine by mixing it with precursor substances, such as hydrochloric acid. The cocaine they manufactured weighs approximately 61 kg. The retail price is estimated to be around 30 billion won, which is enough for 1.22 million doses.
A and the group established a shell company in Korea and disguised themselves as importing wall plaster to secretly bring liquid cocaine through Busan Port. Some of this was re-exported to Australia using the 'container switching method,' where they purchased construction materials, emptied containers, and transferred the liquid cocaine. The remainder was moved to a warehouse located in Hoengseong, Gangwon Province, where it was mixed with chemicals to produce solid cocaine. They attempted to sell it domestically but were apprehended before they could complete the sale.
Prosecutors believe that this group is linked to an international drug organization. It has been determined that this organization financed the establishment of shell companies and the rental costs of warehouses. Furthermore, A, who led the criminal activities, is reportedly of Philippine-Canadian nationality and is said to have originated from a Canadian gang. B is also confirmed to have lived in the United States during his childhood and was involved with a gang in Los Angeles. It has been investigated that B manufactured cocaine under the instruction of a Mexican gang he knew in the past.
Prosecutors stated, "The international drug organization seems to believe that large-scale distribution of cocaine is possible in South Korea and has attempted to manufacture and distribute it domestically," adding that they will make efforts for the early extradition of accomplices living abroad who have been subject to Interpol red notices and will ensure that a strict sentence commensurate with the crimes is imposed on the defendants.