SURGE IN DRUG SMUGGLING CASES

[Anchor Lead]

A man in his 50s died while trying to smuggle illicit drugs last month. He died when a plastic bag in his abdomen containing narcotics became damaged. Cases of drug smuggling are on the rise in Korea. Pundits say Korea is no longer just a transit for drug dealing but a drug-consuming country.

[Pkg]

A cargo section of an express bus terminal. As soon as a man carrying a package shows up, crackdown officials ambush him. The liquid in the baby formula bottles in the box is a narcotic called ketamine. The seized volume reaches 7.3 kg, enough to be administered to 16,000 people. Authorities were aware of the smuggling process since the substance was shipped from the U.S. but they waited until it arrived in Korea to jointly apprehend the local distributor. As parts of a carrier are removed, methamphetamine appears. Illicit drugs are discovered in bundles, hairbands and even chocolate. Drug smuggling methods continue to evolve and the detected amount per case keeps growing. In the first eight months of 2022, 300kg of smuggled drugs were detected. It's less than last year. But the number of cases of smuggling more than one kilogram of methamphetamine at once has already surpassed the 2021 figures. There is a reason drug smugglers are becoming more brazen and organized. As demand for narcotics surged in the nation, methamphetamine is being sold here at eight times the price usually fetched in Thailand or the U.S., making South Korea an attractive market for international drug rings. The amount of illicit drugs brought from Southeast Asia, where many narcotics are produced, has surged by more than 70 percent on-year.

[Soundbite] Kim Hyuk(Incheon Main Customs) : "Korea was used as a transit for drug network laundering, but in just a few years it has become a consuming country with high market value."

Drug runners disguised as ordinary travelers have also become rampant since COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. Tax authorities warn that narcotics permitted in other countries are also subject to punishment in Korea.