📘 Case Summary

🔎 Core Holding

The Supreme Court held—for the first time—that a drug courier (“드라퍼”) can be punished under the Special Act on the Prevention of Illegal Drug Transactions even if the package contained no drugs, as long as the courier believed it did.


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📄 Facts

Defendant A was recruited via Telegram by an overseas drug dealer in July 2024.

His role: act as a “drapper”—a courier who collects parcels believed to contain drugs hidden inside toys shipped internationally.

A went to pick up an international mail package believing drugs were concealed inside a toy.

However:

Customs at Incheon Airport had already opened the toy, found the drugs, and seized them.

The package A collected was an empty box with no drugs left inside.


A argued:

A cardboard shipping box does not look like drugs.

Therefore it cannot be considered “drugs or other items” under Article 9(2) of the Special Act.




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⚖️ Legal Issue (쟁점)

Does “drugs or other items” under Article 9(2) include objects that do not resemble drugs—such as an ordinary shipping box?
And can a person be punished when the item actually contains no drugs?


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🏛️ Lower Courts

1st Instance – Guilty (3 years imprisonment)

The court held that the term “drugs or other items” does not refer to the external appearance.

The law aims to prevent all acts facilitating illegal drug distribution, regardless of container or packaging.

A believed the parcel contained drugs → sufficient for liability.


2nd Instance – Guilty

Reaffirmed:

If the courier believes the parcel contains drugs hidden inside a toy and takes possession,

It violates Article 9(2), even if the box itself looks harmless.




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⚖️ Supreme Court Decision

Appeal dismissed — conviction upheld.

Key reasoning:

1. Purpose of the Act

The Act aims to curb and prevent all acts that promote illegal drug trafficking, especially in international channels.



2. Interpretation of “drugs or other items”

The legislation does not limit the form, shape, or nature of the item.

Any item—if believed by the courier to contain drugs—fits the requirement.



3. Characteristics of drug crimes

Drugs are often transported inside boxes, toys, or concealed packaging.

The danger is the same whether drugs are visible or hidden.



4. Therefore:

Even if drugs were not actually present,

Possessing the package with the belief that it contained drugs constitutes a crime.




Final Outcome

Lower court’s guilty verdict affirmed.

No misinterpretation of Article 9(2).



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📌 Key Takeaway for Practitioners & Public

> Intent and perception matter.
A person acting as a courier under the belief they are handling drugs can be fully liable—even when the physical item contains no drugs at all.

Article: https://www.lawtimes.co.kr/Case-curation/213444