A Korean drug trafficker imprisoned in a Cambodian prison is understood to have used his elderly mother and his daughter in her 30s to conduct ‘money laundering’. Prosecutors regard this trafficker as the ‘second Park Wang-Yeol’ and are pushing for his return. Earlier, police brought drug trafficker Park Wang-Yeol, who is imprisoned in a Philippine jail, to Korea last month and are questioning him.

According to Kyunghyang Shinmun reporting on the 12th, Judge Wi Eun-Suk of the Incheon District Court Criminal Division 15, sitting alone, on December 11 last year sentenced A (90) to one year in prison for violating the Act on the Prevention of Drug Trafficking and ordered the forfeiture of 386,426,500 won. A is the mother of a man in his 60s, Song, who is imprisoned in a Cambodian prison on charges including possession of methamphetamine. Even while in prison, Song communicated with accomplices via mobile phones and distributed drugs into South Korea.

Acting on directions from her son, Song, A was indicted on charges that, on nine occasions from April 2020 to February 2022, she received a total of 386,426,500 won in cash from unidentified persons and then remitted it to designated accounts.

After departing for Cambodia in March 2019, Song was arrested locally in July 2020 on suspicion of possessing methamphetamine. He freely used mobile phones inside prison to communicate with domestic accomplices, and it is understood that from April 2019 to July 2022 he distributed methamphetamine into South Korea at least nine times.

The court found, “It is difficult to accept that A, who knew the situation of Song well by visiting Cambodia five times in 2019 alone and maintaining ongoing communication, was entirely unaware that these funds were related to narcotics crimes.” It continued, “The nature of the crime is very poor,” and explained the sentencing: “There is no prior record of punishment for narcotics crimes, she participated at the request and direction of her son, and she was 89 years old (as of the time of sentencing).”

The daughter, B, of Song was also indicted on charges that, on eight occasions at the direction of Song, she received approximately 608,000,000 won in drug transaction proceeds and remitted 274,200,000 won, but she was acquitted. The court stated, “There is ample reason to suspect that these funds resulted from illegal acts, that she displayed behavior suggesting an attempt to conceal something, and that she made multiple calls with persons who appear to be accomplices of Song, which raises suspicion,” but added, “It is insufficient to find that B knew the money she handled at the direction of Song was funds related to narcotics transactions, and there is no evidence,” and returned a not-guilty verdict.

Beyond his mother and daughter, Song is said to have continued smuggling drugs through other accomplices. A former drug distributor who knows Song well told the reporter by phone, “I heard that although Song is confined in a local prison, he is living freely while eating only Korean food.”