Park Wang-yeol, a "drug kingpin" who was serving time in a Philippine prison, was first brought to trial on charges of smuggling and distributing drugs in Korea. Investigators believe Park continued large-scale drug transactions through domestic distribution networks even while detained there.
The Government Joint Investigation Headquarters on Drug Crimes said on the 22nd that Park Wang-yeol was indicted and detained in the first round on charges of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (psychotropic drugs) and the Narcotics Control Act (psychotropic drugs). As the so-called "three killings in a sugarcane field" case that occurred in the Philippines requires additional consent under the extradition treaty, authorities plan to go through separate procedures in consultation with Philippine officials.
From Nov. 24, 2019, to July 2024, Park Wang-yeol is accused of bringing narcotics into Korea to distribute and sell them. Investigators put Park's drug sales revenue at 6.8 billion won. Adding narcotics worth 6.4 billion won, including 12.7 kilograms of methamphetamine that were seized while being smuggled or distributed, the total distribution scale comes to about 13.1 billion won, according to the joint headquarters. It was found that payments were received via bankbookless deposits or bitcoin e-wallets.
In Oct. 2016, Park Wang-yeol was arrested by local authorities on charges of killing three Koreans in a Philippine sugarcane field and has been serving 60 years in prison, with a minimum term of 52 years, since being sentenced in 2022. The joint headquarters believes that after being incarcerated, Park continued to direct drug imports into Korea while active on Telegram under nicknames like "jeonsegae" ("the whole world"). A field drug test conducted during the provisional transfer on the 25th of last month and a subsequent hair analysis by the National Forensic Service both returned positive for methamphetamine.
The Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the National Intelligence Service, the prosecution, the police and other related agencies provisionally obtained Park Wang-yeol's transfer from Philippine authorities limited to the Narcotics Control Act violation. The Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency sent Park to the Uijeongbu District Prosecutors' Office on the 3rd of this month, after which the case was transferred to the drug joint headquarters and the investigation continued.
Immediately after Park Wang-yeol was handed over, the joint headquarters sent an investigative team to the Philippines, questioned five members connected to the local distribution ring and seized mobile phones used in the crimes. It also said it confirmed indications that the alleged kingpins of three distribution rings, including a person surnamed Lee known as the "white whale," Park's nephew, all remained in Philippine detention facilities while continuing to direct drug imports into Korea. For Lee and others who have not yet been extradited, the joint headquarters plans to proceed with extradition procedures in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice, while also working with Philippine authorities to ensure the sugarcane field murder case leads to additional indictments.