🔍 Case Overview

Defendant:

A woman in her 30s, surnamed Choi.

(A North Korean defector who fled to South Korea in 2011.)


Core Crime

Acted as the ringleader of a large-scale methamphetamine trafficking network.

Smuggled massive quantities of narcotics from Southeast Asia into South Korea.

Personally handled distribution, storage, profit collection, and direct drug use.




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🧭 Criminal Timeline

2011

Defected from North Korea and resettled in South Korea.


2017

Arrested and imprisoned for drug-related offenses, then later released.


2018

Departed South Korea for China and began full-scale narcotics trafficking across Southeast Asia.


2018–2021

Directed subordinates to retrieve 3 kg of methamphetamine hidden inside South Korea.

Distributed 1.3 kg domestically.

Smuggled an additional 2.5 kg from Cambodia in cooperation with accomplices.


Overall Scale

The drugs involved could supply approximately 85,000 users with a single dose each.




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🌐 Methods and Reach

Operated across China, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, and South Korea.

Used Telegram and Twitter, employing coded language and drug slang to promote narcotics.

Gained notoriety among investigators as one of the “Three Major Southeast Asian Drug Lords”, alongside other high-profile traffickers.



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🚓 Arrest and Extradition

July 2021

Arrested in Thailand following a request from South Korean authorities.


Released on bail of approximately 200 million KRW, after which she absconded.

January 2022

Located and arrested in Cambodia through a joint operation involving:

– South Korean police.

– Thai and Cambodian law enforcement.

– Interpol.

– South Korea’s National Intelligence Service.



Forcibly repatriated to South Korea.



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⚖️ Court Ruling

Court

Uijeongbu District Court, Criminal Division 13.


Convictions

Violations of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes related to narcotics.


Sentence

– 23 years in prison.

– 80 hours of mandatory drug addiction treatment.

– Confiscation of 458.55 million KRW in criminal proceeds.




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🧠 Sentencing Rationale

The court emphasized that:

The defendant led an organized, transnational drug trafficking operation.

She imported and distributed extraordinary quantities of methamphetamine.

The crimes posed a grave threat to public safety, making severe punishment unavoidable.


The court also considered mitigating factors:

A substantial portion of the drugs was seized before reaching the market.

The defendant cooperated with investigators, contributing to the arrest of multiple traffickers.

She expressed remorse and vowed not to reoffend, citing her young daughter who remains in North Korea.


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🎯 Key Takeaway

> This case highlights South Korea’s increasingly uncompromising stance on large-scale narcotics trafficking. Leadership roles, international operations, and repeat offenses will almost certainly result in near-maximum prison sentences, even when limited cooperation is provided.

Article: https://m.kyeonggi.com/article/20260207580006