March 6, 2026
SEOUL – President Lee Jae Myung said he asked Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to allow the temporary transfer of a jailed Korean drug kingpin to face investigation and prosecution in South Korea.
Lee noted that “one of the difficulties faced by Koreans living abroad is the issue of public safety” during his luncheon meeting with members of the Korean community in Manila on Wednesday.
Lee further explained that incidents affecting Korean residents in the Philippines appear to be rising, in contrast to the recent trend in which damage to citizens in South Korea from transnational crime has decreased significantly.
Speaking to Koreans residing in the Philippines, Lee disclosed that he “made the official request to President Marcos” for the temporary surrender of the Korean criminal during the summit on Tuesday.
“Those who know may be aware — there is a person called Park something-yeol. He is said to have killed three Koreans. But this person is still exporting drugs to South Korea from inside the prison,” Lee said.
“I told (Marcos) that even inside the prison (Park) calls his girlfriend over and hangs out, and he keeps exporting drugs through Telegram.”
Lee’s remarks appeared to refer to Park Wang-yeol, a Korean national once dubbed the “Telegram drug kingpin.”
Park was arrested by Philippine authorities in October 2020 after escaping from custody twice and is currently serving a 60-year prison sentence. He is widely known as the ringleader of a brutal 2016 killing in which three South Koreans were shot dead in a sugarcane field in Bacolor, Pampanga province.
South Korean media have reported that Park allegedly continued to oversee a large-scale drug trafficking network through the messaging app Telegram and was living a so-called “privileged prison life,” including the use of mobile phones.
During the luncheon, Lee said he told Marcos, “South Korea needs to investigate and punish this person.”
“I asked that (Park) be temporarily transferred to South Korea under a temporary surrender arrangement, and (President Marcos) said he would actively review the request as quickly as possible and try to carry it out.”
Lee also addressed the 2016 killing of Korean businessman Jee Ick-joo, saying he had asked Philippine authorities to “catch the culprit quickly.” Lee said Marcos responded: “I will do my best.”
Jee was abducted from his home by three Philippine police officers who later killed him at the headquarters of the Philippine National Police. They cremated Jee’s body at a crematorium and discarded his remains in a toilet.
One of the main suspects remains at large.
Lee said Seoul is also considering stronger actions to bring the fugitive to justice during the luncheon, which was attended by Jee’s widow, Choi Kyung-jin.
“The Republic of Korea, in fact, is considering pursuing him even by using special capabilities and making every effort to capture him,” Lee said, referring to South Korea by its official name.
Despite the unresolved case, Lee said Philippine authorities have taken “very friendly, substantive measures” toward South Korea.
“As you all know, they operate a separate organization called the Korean Desk,” Lee said. “They set it up to minimize harm to Koreans and to help provide relief for victims. There’s no country other than the Philippines that does this.”
Following the summit, South Korea and the Philippines on Tuesday updated their police cooperation agreement, broadening existing collaboration beyond criminal investigations to include police training and the apprehension of fugitives. The two sides also agreed to establish a bilateral hotline between their police agencies.