Airport customs busts South African drug smuggling rings

INCHEON, June 22 (Yonhap) -- Customs officials at Incheon International Airport,
west of Seoul, said Monday that four foreigners were arrested and some 10 billion
won (US$7.8 million) in banned substances confiscated during a 100 day crackdown
on drugs originating from South Africa.
A total of 13.2 kilograms of narcotics -- 3.1 kilograms of methamphetamine and
10.1 kilograms of marijuana -- worth 10 billion won were seized in the crackdown
that lasted from March to early June by the Incheon Airport Customs and the
Incheon District Prosecutors Office, officials said.
The four suspects -- three from South Africa and one from Japan -- allegedly hid
the drugs in the soles of their shoes or inside the lining of leather briefcases.
The amount seized would be enough to provide 100,000 people with the illegal
substances, said a customs officer.
The investigation was launched in March to clamp down on marijuana trafficked
from South Africa, where the drug is usually harvested between February and
April, he added.
"The probe also proved that South Africa has emerged as a new methamphetamine
provider," the official said. "We will tighten customs inspections for tourists
and freight arriving from the African country."
brk@yna.co.kr
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