Mastermind of hagwon drugged drink caper extradited to Korea

He is accused of orchestrating the distribution of drinks, mixed with methamphetamine and the drug ecstasy, given to four high school students in Daechi-dong on April 3 with the intent of blackmailing their parents.

The 26 year-old, who is accused of masterminding a blackmail scheme using drinks mixed with drugs, entering the Incheon International Airport on Tuesday after being extradited from China. The person only identified as Lee has been in China since October 2022 while he was on trial for another extortion case. [YONHAP]

The 26-year-old accused of masterminding the distribution of drugged drinks provided free to students in Gangnam with the intent of blackmailing their parents was extradited from China on Tuesday.

The extradition occurred eight months after the drugged drinks became a national issue.

The individual, identified only as Lee, had been operating in China since last year.

Lee arrived at Incheon International Airport at 3:40 p.m., dressed in a black hooded shirt, and was escorted by the police without answering any questions.

He is accused of orchestrating the preparation and distribution of drinks given to four high school students in Daechi-dong, an area known for a concentration of private cram institutions, commonly referred to as hagwon, on April 3.

The students fell ill after consuming the free drinks.

According to the police, the students were told the drinks would enhance their memory and concentration.

However, the drinks were concocted with methamphetamine and the drug ecstasy mixed with milk.

The individuals who distributed the drugs also collected the phone numbers of the parents under the guise of conducting a survey.

Officially, nine people fell ill after consuming the drinks, including a parent. However, local media reported that some parents did not come forward because they feared their children would face repercussions.

The drinks concocted with methamphetamine and the drug ecstasy mixed with milk on display at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency office in Seoul on April 17. [YONHAP]

Out of the 100 bottles of drugged drinks found by the police, 36 bottles remained unopened, while 44 bottles were disposed of by part-timers. Additionally, two part-timers unknowingly consumed the drinks containing drugs.

Six individuals were threatened by Lee's gang, including a 36-year-old Chinese national identified only as Park, who delivered 10 grams of methamphetamine from Lee, and a 26-year-old identified only as Gil, who distributed the drugged drinks to part-timers.

A 39-year-old named Kim assisted in making calls to the parents using a system that converted the internet phone number from China to a local number.

Lee's accomplices are currently serving sentences, with Park sentenced to 10 years, Gil sentenced to 15 years, and Kim, who assisted in making extortion calls to the parents, sentenced to eight years.

Lee reportedly had no specific job and mostly worked part-time.

He was also a key member of a nonprofit civic group formed in 2016 that claimed to work on ending prostitution.

However, the organization itself was found to have committed several crimes, including extorting bars with the help of a local organized crime group.

Lee was among the eight people indicted by the prosecutors' office.

According to the police, Lee left for China in October 2022 while still on trial at Suwon District Court.

The Korean police shared information on Lee's whereabouts with the Chinese authorities, and he was taken into custody by the Chinese police in Jilin Province, China, on May 24.

The Chinese authorities finally decided to deport Lee on Dec. 20.

BY LEE HO-JEONG [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]