Men Busted for Smuggling New Drugs, Selling in Itaewon, Hongdae

by Robert Koehler on November 6, 2009

If you can’t beat the foreign pot heads, join ‘em — police have busted three people, including a 23-year-old dude doing his national service as a public official named Cho — for smuggling some new form of drug from overseas and distributing and using it at clubs in — sit down for this — Itaewon and Hongdae.

Another 32 guys, including some fellow named Park, were busted for using it.

The drugs in question were “Skunk” and “Spice,” using JWH-018, and Super E. The deviants used foreign websites in the UK and elsewhere to order the drugs, which they received via international post. The Super E, meanwhile, was directly bought in Canada by a Mr. Kim (25). Interestingly, Skunk and Spice seem to be sold as herbal nutrient supplements in the UK.

NOTE: The words “English teacher” was mentioned not even once in the entire piece.

NOTE 2: Fuck, that’s a lot of damiana leaf.

{ 30 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Brendon Carr November 6, 2009 at 2:05 pm

Apparently, “Skunk” and “Spice” are the sort of dance-club recreational herbal products that are sold at retail locations in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe. They’re packaged almost like pharmaceuticals, and the labels say that the products are safe and legal — which they are in the countries where they’re sold at retail locations, at the time they’re sold.

But even in those dance clubs, the party seems to be ending. Recently, the EU (including UK) and New Zealand made the sale and distribution of benzylpiperazine (BZP) “party pills” illegal.

Would-be importers of these “legal highs” ought to be acutely aware that Korea follows the more-restrictive US scheduling of pharmaceuticals — and compounds the US attitude toward drugs by the Korean rule If you want to do it, Mr. Foreigner, it should be illegal. Don’t fool yourself!

2 Granfalloon November 6, 2009 at 2:35 pm

Are these the thingies they were selling all over the place in Tokyo last time I was there? (five years ago) They were all labeled “Legal drug!”.

3 Brendon Carr November 6, 2009 at 2:49 pm

I don’t know. I’m not a club rat. My guess is yes, what you saw in Japan was some variant of these. And probably, at the time they were on sale in the foreigner-frequented venues, they were not actually legal in Japan either. They were probably legal elsewhere, and the importer believed that meant they would also be legal in Japan.

4 chiamattt November 6, 2009 at 7:24 pm

I’m legal in Japan.

5 chaesuopseum November 6, 2009 at 8:18 pm

Sucks to be them. I don’t do drugs (in Korea), but these kinds of stories never please me. Waste of police resources.

6 keith November 6, 2009 at 9:48 pm

If they could have pinned it on English teachers they surely would have done (sounds like they were all Koreans) have they got bored with that nonsense now?

I experimented a little as a youngster, ‘the uni years’, I even smoked a little pot (as I’m sure 95% of westerner posters here also did) with some of my university professors a couple of times and it never did me any harm, in Korea stick to beer is the rule though. It is idiotic with the silly laws here to get up to that kind of mischief. I guess Carr likes idiotic laws as it keeps him in business, more silly laws are generally good for silly lawyers.

The whole retarded attitude that the US and Korea as well as a few other idiotic governments have in regards to ‘drugs’ is nonsense. Some drugs do a lot of harm to society in general, families, neighbourhoods, and the individuals who indulge. However most of the harm linked to the use of illegal drugs is because they’re illegal. Prohibition is stupid and only serves to tie up police resources and enrich gangsters. You can’t have a war against a noun, a proper noun (like a country) yes, but generally it seems a rather silly activity. I’d rather more serious crimes like piracy, burglary, graft, corporate fraud, bribery, illegal wars, rape, torture, counterfeiting, murder and all that nastiness got more attention from the police and politicians rather than a few idiots getting out of their skulls.

Idiocy is so very common these days, especially in regards to law, police and moronic politicians. Prohibition must end, it’s only criminalising people who haven’t committed any serious crimes. If they’re really into slinging people into jail then do it to the dirty scumbag paedophiles, rapists, and the corrupt businessmen who steal billions out of the economy every year and never get serious jail time.

I can’t believe they think that smoking a joint or taking a pill is more dangerous than allowing taxi drivers to watch TV whilst they’re driving around. The utter stupidity of it all is incredible.

7 setnaffa November 7, 2009 at 12:33 am

Trick is to pick a hotel with good onsite entertainment… I like the Hyatt and the Shilla… Stay there and enjoy yourself legally!!!

8 dinkus maximus November 7, 2009 at 3:46 am

i wish park chan wook would make a “what if” film about Korea that presents the scenario where, instead of puking smashed on soju, koreans went and got high after work. i live in vancouver, and have korean friends here who love the Ja. i’d rather be around a bunch of baked koreans with the munchies than a bunch of drunk koreans suddenly seeking male on male skinship anyday.

9 chiamattt November 7, 2009 at 10:53 am

I’m legal in Vancouver, as well.

10 SomeguyinKorea November 7, 2009 at 12:10 pm

I had to look it up…

Damiana doesn’t seem to be a very potent. Many people don’t feel anything at all after having taken it, which suggests that whatever some maybe feeling may only be due to the placebo effect.

I don’t know if it is still the case, but I read a few years back that psilocybin mushrooms (the infamous “magic” ones) were legal in Japan.

11 Uncle J November 7, 2009 at 1:25 pm

I think it is crazy to always blame foreigners, especially English teachers for all this drug smuggling. The names I am reading in the articles are always “Korean” for example “Cho, Park, Mr Kim” sound like Gyopos to me!!!!!

Korean’s please look at yourselves before you blame the white guy.

12 Brendon Carr November 7, 2009 at 2:24 pm

I guess Carr likes idiotic laws as it keeps him in business, more silly laws are generally good for silly lawyers.

For the record, here, I should state once again: I’m not a criminal-defense lawyer (and not admitted to the Korean bar anyway) and therefore cannot help any foreigner who gets into trouble with drugs. Also, I’m neither a Korean lawmaker nor even a citizen of Korea, so the drug-prohibition laws aren’t my fault. I can’t change anything for you.

Your criminal misadventures are irrelevant to keeping me in business — no matter how much you curse and abuse me! And as a libertarian I agree with your proposition that drugs should be legal. Since they’re not, from time to time I warn foreigners against complacency. Get off my back.

13 iheartblueballs November 7, 2009 at 5:28 pm

I don’t know if it is still the case, but I read a few years back that psilocybin mushrooms (the infamous “magic” ones) were legal in Japan.

Were legal and readily available on just about every street corner in Tokyo until 2002. Legal loophole was closed just before the World Cup I believe.

I used to bring a bag back to Seoul with me (taped under the sac) just about every time I’d go to Tokyo on business. Being white + wearing a suit = not a chance in hell of customs scrutiny.

Shrooms were actually an invaluable resource in dealing with the absuridities of life in Korea. Unfortunately, even tripping on shrooms couldn’t make the nightlife in Seoul the slightest bit interesting.

14 michael November 7, 2009 at 8:44 pm

I just pour a bottle of soju into a big pot and mix in household ammonia, charcoal, acetone, salt, ephedrine, cinnamon, sulfur, and water and boil it down to a crystalline powder that I then sprinkle on kimchi. It’s a shitty way to get high, but the kimchi makes it legal.

15 wookinponub November 8, 2009 at 12:59 am

WTF?? I’ve mixed some shit in my day, but….charcoal???

16 wookinponub November 8, 2009 at 1:01 am

Michael, Good Sir, You are a Liar. Charcoal does NOT crystalize.

17 wookinponub November 8, 2009 at 1:01 am

Not at surface pressure.

18 wookinponub November 8, 2009 at 1:02 am

Shooting for wjk’s record

19 wookinponub November 8, 2009 at 1:02 am

number of post

20 yuna November 8, 2009 at 1:02 am

i’m sure it does in roald dahl’s world..

21 wookinponub November 8, 2009 at 1:03 am

s…..oookay. You got me.

22 yuna November 8, 2009 at 1:09 am

georges marvellous medicine
your children will like it. read it to them for bedtime..i loved it.

23 WangKon936 November 8, 2009 at 6:57 am

Looks like my fellow gyopos are (in unexpected ways) doing their part!

24 michael November 8, 2009 at 7:27 am

wookinpub, you should take your sarcasm detector in for a tuneup ;)

25 wookinponub November 8, 2009 at 11:47 am

Just to be sure there’s no ill will being generated, I got the humor and was trying some sarcasm of my own, not sure about the quality though.

26 theotherkorean November 8, 2009 at 12:34 pm

Looks like my fellow gyopos are (in unexpected ways) doing their part!

Problem with some of the Kyopos, they try too hard being Koreans and expats.

27 yuna November 8, 2009 at 2:32 pm

Just to be sure there’s no ill will being generated, I got the humor and was trying some sarcasm of my own, not sure about the quality though.

the quality was good. you got 10+ on ambiguity.

28 Koreansentry November 9, 2009 at 9:15 am

This overseas Korean students that went to Canada, USA and Australia are coming back as drug addicts. These Korean parents who sent their young kids to America is actually bring in bad habits.

29 dogbertt November 9, 2009 at 9:16 am

Yes, they is.

30 cmm November 10, 2009 at 8:33 am

yes koreansentry, I think you are on to something. Good parenting results in children who can handle living in Canada, the USA, and Australia without becoming drug addicts. So I blame the Korean parents too.

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