A drug trafficking ring headed by a gang leader from the Thento Union, a major Taiwanese criminal organization, has been busted and 10 suspects arrested, the Taipei City Police Department announced yesterday.
The department said in a statement that the ring smuggled drugs including cocaine, amphetamine and cannabis concentrate into Taiwan with an American national bringing the drugs into the country in his luggage.
The ring leader, identified by his surname Hsu (許), then instructed members of the gang to produce and sell cannabis vape cartridges for profit.
Photo copied by Liu Ching-hou, Taipei Times
According to the police department, a special team, acting on tip-offs, seized 4.6kg of cannabis oil and packaging tools during two operations conducted between March and July last year.
Further investigation then led the taskforce to an unnamed US national, whom it suspected of smuggling drugs into Taiwan and eventually arrested in mid-September last year when he attempted to enter Taiwan.
After searching the US national's luggage, the taskforce discovered 1kg of cocaine and 3kg of amphetamine hidden in snack packaging and toys.
In addition, the traveler was found to have disguised 13kg of cannabis concentrate as Canadian maple syrup, police said.
Following a series of raids, the taskforce arrested Hsu and several others, police said.
After questioning, the 10 suspects, including the US national, were transferred to the Taipei District Prosecutors Office for further investigation on suspicion of violating Taiwan's Organized Crime Prevention Act and Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act, the statement said.
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