Methamphetamine hidden in sneaker soles: Police bust Cambodia-linked drug ring that smuggled enough meth for 100,000 doses

Police arrest a suspect involved in smuggling and distributing large quantities of methamphetamine from Cambodia into South Korea. [Jungnang Police Station]

Police have broken up a drug trafficking network that smuggled methamphetamine from Cambodia into South Korea.

The Seoul Jungnang Police Station announced Monday that it had arrested 17 people — including the domestic distribution ringleader, dealers and users — on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act and other offenses. Of those, 11 were detained and six were referred to prosecutors without detention.

During the investigation, police seized approximately 3.2 kilograms of methamphetamine valued at about 10.3 billion won ($6.94 million), 234 grams of a new synthetic drug known as "wax," and 349 grams of marijuana. The methamphetamine alone was enough for roughly 100,000 simultaneous doses.

The investigation began after police received a drug-related emergency call on March 17. Officers arrested a methamphetamine user and then worked backward through the supply chain to identify the domestic distribution network. After about two months of investigation, police on May 29 apprehended the domestic ringleader — a man in his 40s identified only as A — as he tried to flee through a highway rest stop parking lot. Officers seized approximately 2 kilograms of methamphetamine from the trunk of his vehicle.

Methamphetamine hidden inside sneaker soles, seized by the Seoul Jungnang Police Station in cooperation with the Incheon International Airport Police Unit. [Jungnang Police Station]

After arresting the ringleader, police received intelligence that one of two Malaysian women involved in smuggling was about to re-enter the country. Working with the Incheon International Airport Police Unit, officers arrested a foreign woman in her 20s at the airport as she attempted to bring in 1 kilogram of methamphetamine — 500 grams hidden in each sneaker sole.

Among those arrested, ringleader A was detained on June 1 and transferred to prosecutors on June 8. The foreign woman caught smuggling at the airport was detained on July 10 and handed over to prosecutors on July 15. Other members of the distribution network — including upper-level dealers, intermediaries, brokers and street-level sellers — were also detained and referred to prosecutors in succession.

A Jungnang Police Station official said investigators are continuing to pursue suspects who supplied methamphetamine from Cambodia as well as distributors who have not yet been apprehended. "We will work closely with the Korea Customs Service and other drug enforcement agencies to track overseas drug smuggling and domestic distribution networks to the end, and concentrate our investigative resources on preventing narcotics from circulating within the country," the official said.

jookapooka@heraldcorp.com