June 29, 2006
Prosecutors on Wednesday indicted eight men in connection with the seizing of a North Korean ship that was used in an alleged attempt to smuggle amphetamines into Japan four years ago, officials said.
The eight men -- seven Japanese nationals and one South Korean -- were arrested earlier this year and face charges of violating Japan's Stimulant Drugs Control Law, the Tokyo District Prosecutors' office said in a statement.
The Turubong 1 ship was allegedly carrying 237 kilograms of amphetamines from Chongjin, a North Korean port, in November 2002 to a prearranged point in the Sea of Japan, the statement said.
The ship dropped off the cargo for pickup by a Japanese vessel owned by one of the arrested men, but the vessel failed to find the cargo due to bad weather, according to the statement. Japanese police later discovered the drugs washed ashore on the country's northwestern coast.
The boat was seized and searched by Japanese authorities in May, and later returned to North Korea.
News reports have said the South Korean man, Woo Shi-chung, 59, is also suspected of smuggling amphetamines on two earlier occasions in 2002 using a different vessel.
http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20060629p2a00m0na008000c.htmlWhy does this story smell of Rev. Moon? Odd this stuff was coming out of or through North Korea?