South Korea Busts Etomidate-Laced E-Cigarette Smuggling Ring; Devices Suspected to Serve as Drug Carriers for 2 Million Users

Key Points:

·A cooperation between South Korea and Malaysia has led to the bust of an international drug trafficking group smuggling e-cigarettes containing ketamine. 

·A large amount of drugs were seized, and the group planned to smuggle 20,000 related e-cigarettes every month. 

·The ringleader disguised as a South Korean businessman in Seoul, recruiting South Korean students to build a distribution network. 

·South Korean intelligence agencies have been monitoring and providing key information since 2023, leading to the arrest. 

Editor's note: 

In regards to the statement "These four individuals are accused of attempting to smuggle and distribute 20,000 e-cigarettes containing ketamine to South Korea each month through Malaysia and other transit points. The quantity is sufficient for being used by 2 million people at the same time," 2Firsts has determined that the criminal group is suspected of using e-cigarettes as a carrier for drug liquid, rather than directly correlating the complete number of devices to the number of users. In other words, the seized 20,000 e-cigarettes may contain drug liquid that has been repackaged or diluted and distributed to as many as 2 million individuals for use.

【2Firsts News Flash】According to reports from The Korea Times and Yonhap News Agency on July 8th, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) in Seoul, South Korea, in collaboration with Malaysian authorities, has successfully dismantled a drug smuggling operation attempting to bring in 20,000 e-cigarettes containing methamphetamine and cocaine into Korea. Four members of the international drug trafficking group have been arrested, including a 31-year-old Singaporean leader.

These four individuals are accused of attempting to smuggle and distribute 20,000 e-cigarettes containing ethylmethylcathinone to South Korea each month through transit points such as Malaysia. This quantity is enough for 2 million people to use simultaneously.

Propofol is an anesthetic used for sedation and anesthesia. Abuse of illegally mixed propofol can lead to serious health problems, even death.

The Malaysian National Intelligence Agency stated that Malaysian authorities seized 4,958 tubes containing illegal synthetic drugs, enough to supply 500,000 people, as well as thousands of boxes used for packaging.

The intelligence agency identified the leader of an international drug trafficking organization as a suspect for the first time in 2023 while monitoring their activities in the region. Subsequently, the agency dispatched operatives to Malaysia, provided crucial information, and ultimately dismantled his drug cartel.

The leader of the group posed as a South Korean businessman and set up a headhunting company in the Gangnam area of Seoul. The National Intelligence Service stated that he contacted South Korean students studying in Singapore, sold them on the benefits of Methylene, and established a distribution network in that country.