Drug ring buried Vietnamese narcotics in Seoul-area hills, police say

A drug ring smuggled narcotics from Vietnam and buried them in wooded hills around the greater Seoul area to evade the police, the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency said Sunday.

Members allegedly dug up small amounts at a time and sold them through couriers.

Investigators detained nine people, including the ring's alleged head of distribution. Five others, among them alleged couriers, were booked without detention. All 14 were referred to prosecutors.

Between February and April, the group allegedly brought 20 kilograms of narcotics, including liquid synthetic cannabis, into the country from Vietnam. The drugs arrived through Incheon International Airport as international express parcels.

To avoid being traced, the ring used two hills in the capital region as caches and dug out only small amounts at a time to hand to couriers, investigators said.

Police recovered 13 kilograms of the drugs, some of which were still buried and some carried by couriers. The seized narcotics had an estimated street value of 1.33 billion won ($867,000).

The National Police Agency awarded 10 million won in special bonuses to three officers who helped crack the case.

The ring's alleged leader is believed to be overseas. Police have asked Interpol to issue a red notice for the individual and are pursuing further investigation.

"We will track attempts to smuggle and distribute drugs to the end and respond firmly," a police official said.

BY JEONG JAE-HONG [[email protected]]