One Lost Tablet Leads to Gangnam Drug Ring Bust

Report of Lost Item Leads to Arrest of 48...
Starting Point of Major Drug Investigation
Two Couriers in Their Twenties Receive Lengthy Prison Sentences

A tablet PC that was accidentally lost became the decisive clue that exposed an international drug smuggling ring. As a result, two individuals in their twenties who served as drug couriers were ultimately sentenced to lengthy prison terms.

On January 3, Yonhap News, citing the legal community, reported that the First Division of the Supreme Court dismissed the appeals of Mr. A (29) and Mr. B (29), who were indicted on charges of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (narcotics), and upheld the lower court’s ruling, sentencing them to 10 years and 6 years in prison, respectively.

They were brought to trial on charges of receiving ketamine in London, United Kingdom, in September 2024 and smuggling it into South Korea through Incheon International Airport. The ketamine brought in at that time weighed about 6 kilograms and was worth approximately 390 million won on the market. Mr. A was also charged with separately bringing in an additional 6 kilograms of ketamine alone earlier that same month.

Drugs seized by the police. Gangwon Provincial Police Agency

The two met while searching for part-time jobs on an online recruitment site and became friends as they were of similar age and backgrounds. Later, Mr. A received a proposal from an unidentified individual, offering 4 million won and covering all travel and accommodation expenses if he would travel to Europe for a few days and transport some goods. He decided to carry out the plan together with Mr. B.

The crime was unexpectedly uncovered due to a mistake by Mr. A. He lost his tablet PC at Chuncheon Station, and when a station employee checked the device to locate its owner, they discovered KakaoTalk and Telegram conversations. The messages suggested illegal gambling, loan sharking, and drug trafficking. The employee reported this to the police, triggering an investigation.

Based on the chat records found on the tablet, the Gangwon Provincial Police Agency launched an investigation and arrested the two at the Incheon Airport arrival hall on September 11 of the same year. The investigation later expanded to clubs in the Gangnam area, revealing evidence of organized drug distribution.

After about a year of tracking, the police arrested a total of 48 people, including 22 drug distributors and 26 users. Of the distributors, 18 were detained, while users such as entertainment venue employees were referred to the prosecution without detention. During the investigation, drugs worth about 4.5 billion won-including ketamine, methamphetamine, ecstasy, and synthetic cannabis-were seized, some of which were identified as new types of narcotics.

During the trial, Mr. A and Mr. B argued that the evidence obtained from the lost tablet PC was collected illegally, but the court did not accept this claim. Both the first and second trials, as well as the Supreme Court, recognized the admissibility of the evidence, stating that "even if there were some procedural flaws, the public interest in revealing the substance of the crime takes precedence."