South Korea court issues warrant for key drug supplier to Park Wang-yeol

A South Korean court issued an arrest warrant Sunday for a man identified only as Choi, accused of supplying illegal drugs to notorious methamphetamine trafficker Park Wang-yeol following his extradition from Thailand, The Korea Times reported.

The warrant comes weeks after Park himself was repatriated to South Korea from the Philippines, signaling that authorities are working to prosecute alleged members of a drug trafficking network that spanned multiple countries including the Philippines and Thailand.

Choi, whose full name was not disclosed, arrived in South Korea from Thailand on May 2, The Korea Times reported. The Suwon District Court issued the warrant citing flight risk and concerns about evidence destruction.

Choi is accused of smuggling and distributing illegal drugs worth 10 billion won — approximately $6.77 million — since 2019, according to The Korea Times. Investigators allege he served as a key supplier to Park, a methamphetamine trafficker whose repatriation last month drew intense attention from South Korean law enforcement.

Park, described as one of South Korea's most notorious drug kingpins, was repatriated from the Philippines on March 25, The Korea Times reported. He had been serving a 60-year prison sentence there for the murder of three South Koreans in 2016 before South Korean authorities secured his return.

Choi partly admitted to separate drug-related offenses during questioning but denied any knowledge of Park Wang-yeol, according to The Korea Times. Investigators have not publicly disclosed the basis for their allegation that the two men were connected.

The case has drawn broad attention in South Korea as authorities continue to untangle the operations of Park Wang-yeol's alleged trafficking network, which operated across the Philippines and Thailand.