A man in his 20s who sold 260 million won worth of hemp through the so-called “dark web,” which is difficult to track, was also sentenced to prison in the second trial.
According to the legal community on the 29th, the Seoul High Court’s Criminal Department 3 (chief judge Lee Chang-hyung, Nam Ki-jung and Yoo Je-min) sentenced A (29), who was handed over to trial on charges of violating the Special Act on the Prevention of Illegal Drug Transactions, to three and a half years in prison as in the first trial and ordered the completion of 80 hours of drug addiction rehabilitation education programs.
“The defendant appears to have been close to a hemp dealer to some extent, so severe punishment is inevitable,” the court said. “Considering factors such as age, popularity, environment, and post-crime circumstances, the lower court’s sentencing was made within reasonable discretion.”
Mr. A is accused of selling 2.5 kilograms of hemp worth 260 million won on hundreds of occasions on a drug sales site on the dark web from June 2022 to June 2022. He is also accused of posting advertisements for hemp sales on the dark web several times and possessing and smoking himself.
The site used by A is the only drug sales site in Korea operated on the dark web, with 4,000 members, according to the survey.
Prosecutors found and indicted 16 people, including drug dealers and suppliers from six groups that distributed 7.8kg of hemp, 208ml of synthetic hemp, and 98 liquid hemp cartridges worth 860 million won on the site, and A is one of them.
