Wine Among Smugglers’ Tools as South Korea Seizes Record Drug Haul

South Korean customs authorities say international drug traffickers are disguising narcotics as everyday consumer goods — including wine — as part of increasingly sophisticated smuggling operations into Asia.

In the first half of 2025, the Korea Customs Service (KCS) cracked down on 617 drug trafficking cases involving a combined 2,680 kilograms of illegal substances — an all-time six-month high. The number of cases surged 70 percent from a year earlier, while the total weight of drugs seized jumped ninefold.

Officials said the volume was enough to supply doses to almost 90 million people at once, underscoring the scale of the trade.

At a recent press conference in Seoul, customs officers displayed items seized in recent busts, showing how traffickers hide drugs in inconspicuous products such as stuffed toys, slippers, snack packages — and wine bottles.

One example was a bottle of wine that, under X-ray inspection, was found to contain a liquefied narcotic instead of alcohol. The bottle appeared factory-sealed and intact, a tactic authorities say is designed to slip past casual inspection.

This follows an earlier story in Hong Kong where customs authorities seized liquid cociane worth around HK$ 490 million (US$62.68 million), ingeniously disguised as white wine, as we reported earlier.