Taoyuan prosecutors yesterday indicted three men in an international drug trafficking case involving more than 512kg of ketamine with an estimated street value of NT$300 million (US$9.45 million), and are seeking prison terms of more than 10 years for two of the suspects.
The Taoyuan District Prosecutors’ Office said the suspects, surnamed Liao (廖), Chen (陳) and Tsai (蔡), were charged with transporting a Category 3 narcotic in contravention of the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act (毒品危害防制條例).
Prosecutors are seeking sentences of more than 10 years for Liao and Chen, and more than seven years for Tsai, citing the large quantity of drugs involved and the potential harm to society.
Photo copied by Cheng Shu-ting, Taipei Times
The three men allegedly conspired with unidentified accomplices to smuggle 84 boxes of ketamine, falsely declared as glass fiber, from Frankfurt, Germany, by air on Dec. 7 last year, the office said.
The shipment was intercepted by customs officers upon arrival at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport. They found 512.69kg of ketamine concealed in the cargo and reported the case to investigators.
The Investigation Bureau led a joint taskforce with customs officials and police, and traced the shipment to a residence in Kaohsiung’s Siaogang District (小港).
Liao had allegedly rented the residence as the delivery site, while Tsai allegedly rented a vehicle to assist in transporting the drugs, prosecutors said, adding that with the two had received NT$80,000 as payment.
Chen allegedly instructed two minors to monitor the operation and report back, offering them NT$10,000 to NT$20,000.
Authorities arrested Liao and Tsai in Kaohsiung on Dec. 10 last year when they attempted to collect the shipment, along with the two minors, prosecutors said, adding that Chen was later apprehended.
The drugs, if distributed, could be enough for 1.7 million doses, posing a serious threat to public health and social order, they said.
The ketamine was sampled and destroyed in accordance with regulations before the investigation was concluded, the office said.
The minors are being handled separately by the Kaohsiung juvenile and family courts.
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