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Customs seize 720 kgs of cocaine from container ship in Busan Port

Published: 12 May. 2025, 18:44

An image of cocaine with a U.S. penny for reference [U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration]

Authorities discovered 720 kilograms (1,587 pounds) of cocaine on a container ship docked at Busan Port, an amount reportedly equivalent to 24 million doses of the drug.

Busan Regional Customs said Monday that it found the cocaine on a 95,390-ton container vessel registered under the Maltese flag, which was moored at Busan New Port on Saturday.

Investigation revealed the cocaine was concealed in a container onboard the ship. Based on an estimated average dose of 30 milligrams, the haul could supply 24 million doses. It is worth an estimated 360 billion won ($254 million) in total.

“The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration tipped us off on the cocaine before the ship entered the port,” said a Busan Customs official. “A thorough search led to the discovery.”

Operators of the vessel were questioned immediately after the drugs were found and are currently under further investigation.

“We plan to investigate the origin and intended distribution route of the drugs under the direction of prosecutors,” the customs official added. “We still don’t know whether Korea was the final destination or a transit point.”

Officials confiscate dozens of boxes containing cocaine at the Okgye Port in Gangneung, Gangwon, on April 2. [KOREA COAST GUARD]

The discovery is the latest in a string of large-scale drug smuggling attempts that are becoming more involved and larger in scale.

Korean authorities seized 2 tons of cocaine — worth 1 trillion won — on a Norwegian ship docked at Okgye Port in Gangneung, Gangwon on April 2. It was the largest cocaine bust in the country's history, at an estimated 100 million doses and 1 trillion won street value.

Investigators found that the vessel departed from Mexico and, while sailing from Peru to Panama on Feb. 8, rendezvoused with a boat carrying the drug and transferred the haul onboard. Of the 20 Filipino crew members onboard, two were arrested on April 25 and are currently under investigation.

Based on the vessel’s route, experts believe drug traffickers may be targeting Asia due to tighter border controls in North America, prompting attempts to open new markets via Busan Port.

A bag of cocaine found within a ship docked at the Onsan Port in Ulsan on April 6, 2024 [DAEGU DISTRICT PROSECUTORS OFFICE]

In January last year, 100 kilograms of cocaine were discovered in a seawater intake unit of a 75,000-ton Korean cargo ship docked at Busan New Port. In April 2023, 33 kilograms of cocaine worth 16.5 billion won were found in a container that had arrived from the United States.

“This latest smuggling attempt also appears to be a result of intensified border controls in the United States and Canada, pushing traffickers to seek new distribution routes in Asia,” the Busan Customs official said.

“We are focusing our investigation on whether the cocaine was meant for domestic distribution and if there are any local buyers involved.”

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY LEE EUN-JI [[email protected]]