77 Billion Won Worth of Duty-Free Goods Embezzled
Switched with Fake Boxes in Intermediate Warehouse
CCTV footage capturing the scene of duty-free liquor being swapped with bottled water (Provided by Incheon Airport Customs)
A group smuggling duty-free liquor of over 1,100 bottles and 700,000 packs of cigarettes worth approximately 7.7 billion KRW was caught by authorities and prosecuted.
Incheon Airport Customs Headquarters and the International Crime Investigation Division of Incheon District Prosecutors' Office announced on the 1st that they have prosecuted five suspects (four detained and prosecuted) for smuggling 700,000 packs of duty-free cigarettes (worth about 3.76 billion KRW), 1,110 bottles of duty-free liquor (worth about 360 million KRW), and attempting to smuggle 400,000 packs of duty-free cigarettes (worth about 3.58 billion KRW).
The suspects committed the crime by intercepting duty-free goods purchased under the name of Chinese "bottari-sang" (traveling traders) departing overseas. They exploited the fact that duty-free goods, after export return declaration, pass through intermediate warehouses due to shipping schedules when being shipped out from airports or port cargo terminals, and swapped the goods with fake export boxes of similar appearance.
In particular, even though a case of swapping duty-free goods with bottled water in 2022 was under investigation, they created fake cigarette boxes filled with cardboard instead of cigarettes to more actively evade customs surveillance.
A substitution box filled with corrugated cardboard instead of cigarettes (Provided by Incheon Airport Customs)
The Incheon District Prosecutors' Office improved the quality of warehouse CCTV footage secured by Incheon Airport Customs to directly confirm the "swapping" scene and arrested three of the suspects. Incheon Airport Customs, in cooperation with the prosecutors, additionally arrested the ringleader.
During this process, 310,000 packs of Chinese duty-free cigarettes and 960 bottles of duty-free liquor among the smuggled goods were seized. Assets worth about 140 million KRW, including seven vehicles owned by the smuggling group, were also confiscated.
The first three suspects arrested denied the crime after prior collusion and concealed the existence of the ringleader A. They even deleted mobile phone data and submitted fake documents. The ringleader A recruited an unrelated person B as a "front man," impersonated the ringleader, and bribed B with 40 million KRW to make a false confession to customs. B actually appeared before customs and falsely confessed.
Incheon Airport Customs Headquarters and Incheon District Prosecutors' Office stated, "Customs crimes such as smuggling are serious offenses that undermine customs clearance procedures and disrupt the domestic market order. We will continue to respond systematically and closely in cooperation between customs and prosecutors."
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