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| Some of the drugs smuggled into Korea caught by Incheon Main Customs from January to March this year were concealed inside paper congratulatory cards and canned food, among others. Courtesy of Incheon Main Customs |
By Ko Dong-hwan
The number of visitors to Korea declined sharply due to lengthy self-quarantine measures amid the COVID-19 pandemic. But this has boosted shipments to Korea of online purchases from overseas, including illegal narcotics.
Incheon Main Customs, which operates under the Korea Customs Service, said Monday that a total of 189 counts of smuggled drugs, weighing 99 kilograms in total, were confiscated between January and March this year. Sixteen people involved in the smuggling have been caught and handed over to prosecutors.
Among the busted drugs, 96 kilograms were found concealed in international parcels or letters. That marks an increase of 68 percent year-on-year in terms of weight.
Among the concealed drugs confiscated this year were 58 kilograms of methamphetamine, which is one of the most widely used illegal drugs in Korea. The amount was a big increase (by about 157 percent) from 23 kilograms discovered in the same period of the previous year.
Drug-smuggling methods are becoming increasingly sophisticated, the customs authority said.
Buyers used the dark web and online messengers protected by security walls to purchase the drugs. Payments were mostly made through virtual currency brokers and the drugs were delivered through a network of couriers. The final deliverer then left the drugs at a certain location for the buyer to pick up later.
Some of the confiscated drugs this year were hidden inside paper congratulatory cards after being spread thinly and placed between the pages. Others were vacuum-packed and concealed inside canned food or hidden inside corrugated cardboard.
The smuggled drugs were discovered after the customs authority traced suspicious communication records and investigated using digital forensics methods.
