Ten Times More Addictive Than Ordinary Cannabis... Foreign Nationals Arrested for Smuggling Highly Concentrated Cannabis Products

[Financial News] Two Sri Lankan nationals were referred to prosecutors in custody after allegedly smuggling highly concentrated cannabis products worth approximately 13 million won into South Korea via international express mail and planning to distribute them. The seized drugs contained more than 10 times the level of the psychoactive component found in ordinary cannabis, making them highly addictive and dependence-forming.
Busan Customs of the Korea Customs Service said on the 14th that it had investigated and detained Sri Lankan nationals A, in his 30s, and accomplice B, also in his 30s, who were residing illegally in South Korea. They were referred to prosecutors on suspicion of violating the Act on the Control of Narcotics and other offenses.
A is accused of smuggling highly concentrated drugs worth a total of 13.23 million won in March via international express mail from Sri Lanka. The shipment contained 85.25 grams of hashish, worth approximately 10.23 million won, and 30 grams of cannabis paste, worth approximately 3 million won.
Customs officers arrested A in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, through a controlled delivery. This investigative technique involves delivering seized drugs under investigators’ surveillance and control in order to arrest the actual recipient. After the arrest, customs officials conducted a detailed digital forensic analysis of A’s mobile phone. They found that he had used the vacant home of another Sri Lankan who had previously lived in South Korea and then left the country as the delivery address, among other carefully planned methods.
Four months later, customs officials also arrested accomplice B, who was hiding at a factory in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province. B is accused of conspiring in the smuggling operation and planning to sell the drugs in South Korea. Investigators initially faced difficulties because B left his residence immediately after A’s arrest, turned off his mobile phone and went into hiding. He was eventually arrested after a tracking investigation.
During questioning, B reportedly denied the allegations and attempted to shift responsibility. However, after investigators presented evidence including a positive preliminary urine test for cannabis and Facebook messages indicating that he had conspired in the crime, he admitted to the offenses, customs officials explained.
The 85.25 grams of seized hashish is enough for 850 to 1,220 people to inhale at the same time. It is a highly concentrated drug made by collecting, drying and pressing cannabis resin. Its main psychoactive component, THC, is present at levels at least three to four times higher than in ordinary cannabis and, in some cases, more than 10 times higher.
Cannabis paste, another type of drug, is a tonic made by mixing cannabis with various herbal medicines according to Ayurveda, Sri Lanka’s traditional medical system. Although it is used locally to increase appetite and enhance sexual function and may be legally produced and distributed there, it is classified as a narcotic in South Korea and cannot be brought into, distributed or consumed in the country.
Yeom Seung-yeol, head of the Investigations Bureau at Busan Customs, said, "Foreign workers residing in South Korea should bear in mind that even medicines or foods they commonly take in their home countries will be subject to severe punishment in South Korea if they contain narcotic substances such as cannabis." He added, "If you become aware of any indications of narcotics being smuggled into the country, please report them to the Korea Customs Service’s Smuggling Report Center."

[email protected] Baek Chang-hoon Reporter