One Arrested, One Fled to Home Country and Placed on Wanted List
The Incheon Airport Customs Headquarters of the Korea Customs Service announced on the 9th that they have arrested a 29-year-old Kazakhstani man, Mr. A, who smuggled mephedrone, known as the "zombie drug." A man in his 20s of the same nationality, Mr. B, has been placed on a wanted list.
Mephedrone is a new type of drug widely used as a substitute for methamphetamine (Philopon) in Central Asian countries such as Russia, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan. When inhaled in large amounts, it causes excitement and symptoms such as biting people's necks.
Customs detected 61.5g of mephedrone hidden inside a candle in an express shipment from Ukraine during a customs inspection in October last year and launched an investigation. The suspects showed meticulousness by frequently changing the delivery address and contact information to evade tracking, but customs persistently pursued them and arrested Mr. A at Gimpo Airport in November last year as he was attempting to flee to his home country.
Investigations revealed that Mr. A conspired with Mr. B to make easy money while staying illegally and contacted overseas suppliers via Telegram to smuggle drugs into the country. It was also revealed that mephedrone and ecstasy (MDMA) were used at domestic entertainment establishments. Mr. B fled to Kazakhstan, and customs have issued an arrest warrant and currently have him on the wanted list.
A customs official stated, "The smuggling of drugs targeting foreign residents in the country is steadily increasing, and foreigner-related crimes are also on the rise. Customs will continue to actively block drug smuggling at the customs clearance stage and do its best to apprehend drug smuggling offenders."
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