Investigators question nephew of accused drug trafficker Park Wang-yeol in ongoing narcotics case
Published: 18 Apr. 2026, 14:01
![Park Wang-yeol, a drug trafficker, leaves Uijeongbu District Court on March 27 after his questioning. Investigators announced Saturday they also questioned an accomplice and nephew of Park. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/04/18/258066e0-6ba7-488d-b701-69058ac4207d.jpg)
Park Wang-yeol, a drug trafficker, leaves Uijeongbu District Court on March 27 after his questioning. Investigators announced Saturday they also questioned an accomplice and nephew of Park. [NEWS1]
Investigators said Saturday they have questioned an accomplice and nephew of the notorious accused drug trafficker Park Wang-yeol in the Philippines.
Nine people, including a prosecutor, were sent to a correctional facility in Manila on Sunday to question the nephew, who was jailed there and returned earlier Saturday, according to an investigation task force comprising eight agencies, including the prosecution, police and the National Intelligence Service.
The nephew, known as the "blue whale," is suspected of working as Park's accomplice to smuggle drugs into Korea and distribute them.
Using material gathered from questioning the nephew and other accomplices jailed in the Philippines, the task force plans to reinforce the evidence to support the charges against Park.
The 48-year-old Park, who has been serving a 60-year prison sentence in the Philippines for the murders of three Koreans in 2016, was temporarily repatriated last month to be investigated on drug trafficking charges.
In total, he is accused of smuggling, distributing and selling or attempting to sell 13.1 billion won ($8.9 million) worth of drugs in Korea.
Yonhap
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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