4 held for smuggling cash to S.Korea

SEOUL--Four South Koreans were arrested Monday on suspicion of smuggling more than 2 billion yen into the country for thousands of illegal Korean residents in Japan.

The Chungbuk Provincial Police Agency said the suspects changed the yen into won in Seoul and took a 3- to 4-percent commission before sending the money to designated accounts.

About 3,000 Koreans without legal visas in Japan used the couriers, police said. As illegal residents, they were unable to use normal banking channels.

The alleged smugglers, including a 69-year-old woman in Seoul, operated from September 2006 to June this year, carrying a total of 2.28 billion yen into South Korea without declaring it to customs.

They used 47 accounts under fictitious names to channel the funds.(IHT/Asahi: November 4,2009)