Pot bust! Three Vietnamese arrested after record 1-ton marijuana seizure

Tokyo Reported

2 days ago

TOKYO (TR) – Law enforcement on Wednesday announced the arrest of three Vietnamese nationals after the seizure of more than one ton of marijuana in Tochigi Prefecture earlier this year, reports the Asahi Shimbun (Aug. 13).
The seizure is the largest on record for an illegal drug anywhere in Japan since statistics began being kept in 1951, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare's Narcotics Control Division.
According to the division, the three Vietnamese nationals, including Pham Ngoc Thuy, 51, allegedly worked together to smuggle approximately 1,046 kilograms of marijuana — with a street value of approximately 5.2 billion yen — on a cargo ship that arrived at Tokyo Port from Da Nang Port in Vietnam in June.
The marijuana was divided into 200 cardboard boxes inside a container and transported to a materials storage facility in Tochigi Prefecture. Two of the defendants are alleged to have possessed the marijuana at a storage facility on June 18.
Pham is a renovator from Chikusei City, Ibaraki Prefecture. After their arrests, all three were indicted on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act. violating the Narcotics Control Act regarding smuggling.
The division did not reveal whether the defendants admit to the allegations, citing it as a potential hindrance to the investigation.
The smuggling was discovered during an inspection by Tokyo Customs. The final destination for the shipment was a business in Osaka City. The division is continuing the investigation, believing that the defendants were key players in receiving the shipment and that an international smuggling organization may be involved. Authorities seized more than one ton of marijuana from a storage facility in June (X) 'Smuggling operation'
According to interviews with investigators and information on the ship's route published on a private website, the ship used for the smuggling departed Da Nang Port in Vietnam on May 26. It then passed through ports in China before arriving at Tokyo Port on June 5, reports NHK (Aug. 13).
The large amount of marijuana brought into Japan was first discovered by Tokyo Customs, which inspects imported cargo. When the container was searched at Tokyo Port, marijuana was found hidden in 200 of the approximately 1,500 cardboard boxes that had been imported as charcoal.
The Narcotics Control Bureau then did not immediately seize the marijuana, but instead conducted a 'live-controlled delivery,' a type of 'smuggling operation,' in order to uncover the smuggling ring.
In a 'smuggling operation,' the drugs are sometimes switched with another item to avoid losing track of them, but in a 'live-controlled delivery' the cargo is tracked directly without being switched.
This method was chosen to minimize the risk of being detected by the smuggling group.
The large amount of marijuana was then transported out of the port under surveillance by the Narcotics Control Department.
The original destination was Osaka City, but the marijuana was moved north and taken to the aforementioned storage facility in Tochigi Prefecture. The Narcotics Control Department subsequently arrested several Vietnamese nationals who had come to the storage facility to pick up the marijuana. A ship containing more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuana arrived at Tokyo Port on June 5 (NHK) Marijuana use getting higher among young people
Last year, customs officials made a record 390 marijuana smuggling-related busts nationwide at airports and ports last year.
The underlying cause is thought to be the widespread abuse of marijuana, particularly among young people.
According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, 6,342 people were arrested by police and Narcotics Control Department officials nationwide for possession or smuggling of marijuana last year. The figure is the second highest ever, following the record-high reached two years ago.
Of them, 4,600 people were in their 20s or teens or younger, accounting for over 70 percent of the total, an increase of 4.4 times over the 1,049 recorded in 2015. This indicates a notable trend, particularly among young people.
There have also been a number of cases of marijuana being bought and sold on social media, often under such euphemisms such as 'vegetables.'
Feeling increasingly concerned about the situation, the Narcotics Control Department is strengthening border control measures.
Since 2020, smuggling prevention divisions have been established in the Narcotics Control Departments of Tokyo, Osaka and other cities.
When illegal drug smuggling is discovered at airports or ports, the departments work with police and customs to investigate smuggling groups. In the Tochigi case, a smuggling prevention division joined the investigation, working in cooperation with the Japan Coast Guard and customs. High price
Harumi Seto, former director of the Narcotics Control Division of the Kanto-Shinetsu Regional Health and Welfare Bureau, points out that smugglers are taking advantage of the high price marijuana can fetch in Japan compared to overseas.
Regarding the recent smuggling case, Seto said, 'One ton of marijuana is the equivalent of 2 million doses. With demand for marijuana in Japan and the price being more than five times higher than overseas, the perpetrators probably thought they could sell it at a high price.'
Regarding the spread of marijuana use in Japan, he said, 'It's possible to purchase it using social media or highly confidential communication apps, and, conversely, we live in an age where anyone can become a 'drug dealer' as if it were a part-time job. While there is a lack of awareness of the dangers of marijuana, it is becoming established as a primary drug among some young people.'
He went on to point out, 'In addition to marijuana being smuggled from overseas, there have been a number of cases of domestically grown marijuana being sold illegally. To prevent abuse, Japan's investigative agencies need to work together to proactively crack down on smuggling and cultivation.'