Japan Seizes Record 1-Ton Cannabis Shipment, Charges Three Vietnamese

Japan’s Kanto-Shinetsu Narcotics Control Department said on 13 August that it has confiscated roughly one metric ton of dried cannabis, the largest single haul ever recorded in the country. Officials valued the shipment at about ¥52 billion ($35 million). Tokyo Customs officers flagged the container during an X-ray inspection, then allowed it to proceed under a controlled-delivery operation that led investigators to a storage yard in Tochigi Prefecture. Prosecutors have charged three Vietnamese nationals—Pham Ngoc Thuy, 51; Nguyen Trong Ngoc, 32; and Pham Phu Duc, 28—with importing the drugs for profit. Investigators say the suspects loaded the cargo in Da Nang on 26 May, hid it in 200 cardboard boxes labeled as charcoal, and landed it at Tokyo Port on 5 June. Authorities believe an overseas smuggling network targeted Japan because of the comparatively high street price of cannabis and are working to identify additional accomplices. The seizure surpasses Japan’s previous full-year record of 850 kilograms of cannabis seized in 2023, underscoring a rise in large-scale trafficking attempts. Health ministry officials said tighter port screening and cross-border intelligence sharing would continue as part of efforts to curb the illicit drug trade.