Attempt to Illegally Bring in 3.5kg of Pure Gold
Recruited Seven Japanese Nationals to Transport the Gold
The international gold price has surpassed $4,000 per ounce for the first time in history. Domestic gold prices have also risen accordingly, with the cost of purchasing one don now exceeding 800,000 won. Amid this surge, a group attempting to smuggle 3.5 kilograms of pure gold into Japan by disguising it as gold medals from a martial arts tournament has been apprehended by the police.
A Korean national, identified as Kim, and seven Japanese nationals were caught by customs while trying to bring the gold from Incheon to Osaka. It was revealed that they intended to resell a total of 440 million won worth of gold in Japan without paying consumption tax.
On October 10, Yonhap News, citing Japan's Kyodo News and Sankei Shimbun, reported that a group attempting to smuggle gold into Japan by claiming it was gold medals won at a martial arts tournament had been caught by Japanese police.
Kim, who identified himself as a martial arts athlete, along with seven Japanese nationals, is suspected of attempting to smuggle approximately 3.5 kilograms of gold from Incheon Airport to Kansai Airport in Osaka in mid-January of this year. The gold was estimated to be worth about 47 million yen (approximately 440 million won). Kim recruited seven Japanese individuals in their 20s to 40s to transport the gold, handing each of them a gold medal weighing about 500 grams.
Some of the Japanese individuals apprehended by Osaka customs reportedly claimed, "We received the medals by participating in a (martial arts) tournament." Although each medal was engraved with the name of the person responsible for transporting it, Sankei Shimbun reported that none of them had actually participated in any tournament.
Kyodo News reported, "It appears they intended to profit by selling the gold in Japan without paying the consumption tax levied on gold imports." Japanese police detained Kim in mid-September and referred him to prosecutors along with the other members of the group. Kim admitted to the charges and reportedly stated during the police investigation, "I was asked by someone in Korea to smuggle gold and cooperated several times since the end of last year."
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