17 US soldiers face S. Korean drug probe after police raid army bases
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Following a search on two US army facilities, South Korean authorities interview more than a dozen American soldiers on suspicion of importing and trafficking synthetic cannabis.
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S. Korean police display items seized during the raids (Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police)
The United States Forces Korea (USFK) said on Wednesday that 17 American soldiers stationed in South Korea are being looked into by the local authorities for "alleged illegal drug behavior."
Two women implicated in the case have been detained for allegedly transporting drugs from the US using military mail, as per South Korea's Yonhap news agency.
The two people and the American soldiers were questioned after police raided two US army bases in May, according to the Pyeongtaek police department.
After obtaining information from the US Army Criminal Investigation Division, police said they conducted search operations at Camp Humphreys, south of Seoul, and Camp Casey, north of the capital.
The two women also participated in the use, sale, or distribution of illegal narcotics, the report said.
The 17 American soldiers have been sent to prosecutors, according to Yonhap, and could be charged, but they are not currently in custody.
In a statement today, the USFK said that the "United States Forces Korea is aware of the Korean National Police's investigation of 17 Soldiers for alleged illegal drug behavior and misuse of the military mail system."
"Currently, no soldiers are in confinement or being detained in relation to this incident."
South Korean police have taken $12,850 in drug sales earnings, 80 ml of synthetic cannabis, and other materials from the suspects, the Yonhap added.
The strict law against illicit drugs in South Korea makes it a crime to use, possess, or sell these substances.
A person who smokes synthetic cannabis -- one of the most strictly regulated psychoactive substances in South Korea -- will be committing a crime that is punished by up to 10 years in prison or a fine of 100 million won (US$75,332). Not only that, but selling the illegal substance also carries a potential life sentence in jail.
It "does not condone any behaviors among its personnel that violate South Korean laws, rules or directives" and that it "supports this investigation", USFK said.
In South Korea, there are about 28,500 American soldiers deployed.
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