Two suspects of a scam ring have been arrested for allegedly manufacturing and supplying beverages laced with drugs to high school students in Seoul with the purpose of extortion, police said Saturday.
One of the suspects was arrested in Wonju, Gangwon Province, on Friday for handing over drug-laced beverages through express buses and "quick service" delivery services to four individuals accused of giving out such drinks to students in Gangnam, southern Seoul, on Monday night after tricking them into believing they were helpful for concentration.
The other suspect was arrested in Incheon, just west of Seoul, on Friday for forging incoming calls from China into local mobile phone numbers to blackmail the parents of students who drank the drug-laced beverages to demand money. The scam ring threatened to report the students to the police for drug charges.
Police have applied for an arrest warrant for the two suspects.
The four individuals allegedly offered the beverages for free, claiming it was a tasting event, and also asked the students for their parents' contact information, according to the police.
They told police they didn't know the beverages were drugged and distributed them only as part-timers hired through the internet. Seven students and a parent have so far been found affected.
Police are tracking down an alleged mastermind behind the scheme.
Source: Yonhap News Agency