Daegu police arrest 94 in online drug trafficking crackdown

The Daegu Metropolitan Police Agency announced Monday that its wide-area crime investigation unit had arrested 94 people for smuggling drugs from overseas and selling, buying or using them online, sending 12 into pretrial detention.

Those arrested included one smuggler, one distributor, 29 couriers, 61 buyers and users, and two unregistered virtual asset payment agents.

The suspects are accused of importing methamphetamine and other narcotics from Vietnam and other countries between April and July using international courier and freight services, then distributing the drugs through Telegram sales channels.

They also conducted transactions using a method known as "throwing," in which drugs are hidden in advance at vacant or abandoned buildings, hillside areas and old residential neighborhoods for buyers to retrieve.

Police seized 4.046 kilograms of methamphetamine valued at around 1.62 billion won ($1.2 million), along with ketamine, MDMA and synthetic cannabis.

Couriers had hidden 2,530 LSD tablets at 16 locations nationwide, including Gyeonggi Province and Busan; police recovered all of them. Their street value was estimated at 250 million won.

Investigation results showed that a significant number of the buyers arrested were in their 20s and 30s, including university students, office workers and day laborers. Some suspects had already been referred for prosecution on drug use charges and were awaiting indictment when they purchased and used drugs again.

"We are tracking domestic and overseas suppliers and accomplices who have not yet been apprehended," a Daegu police official said. "If any are confirmed to have fled abroad, we plan to continue the investigation in cooperation with Interpol and the US Drug Enforcement Administration."