Coast Guard Investigating Entry Route After Receiving Report
Twenty kilograms of ketamine, enough for approximately 660,000 people to use simultaneously, were discovered at Gwangchigi Beach near Seongsan Ilchulbong in Seogwipo, Jeju.
According to the Jeju Regional Coast Guard Headquarters on October 14, a coastal environment protector found a suspicious object while cleaning the beach on the morning of October 7, during the Chuseok holiday, and reported it to the authorities.
20kg of ketamine found at Gwangchigi Beach, Seongsan-eup, Seogwipo City, Jeju on the 7th. Provided by Jeju Coast Guard Headquarters
The object, mixed in with a garbage collection bag, consisted of twenty rectangular cuboids measuring 25cm by 15cm, each packaged in 1kg brick-shaped units. The exterior was wrapped in silver foil and transparent plastic, and the Chinese character '茶' (meaning 'tea') was written on the surface.
After the Coast Guard requested an analysis from the National Forensic Service, it was confirmed that the substance was ketamine, which, based on a single dose of 0.03g, could be used by 660,000 people at once. The estimated street value is about 6 billion won. While ketamine is originally used as an analgesic and anesthetic, it is classified as a new type of narcotic due to its hallucinogenic effects.
The Coast Guard is investigating all possibilities, including that the ketamine may have drifted in from the open sea or was deliberately left behind by someone. A special investigation team has been formed to search the coastal area, trace possible entry routes, and conduct DNA tests on the packaging as evidence. Plans are also underway to conduct a joint international investigation with the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
A Coast Guard official stated, "We will thoroughly investigate the route through which the ketamine was brought in."
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