Over 30 Chinese Nationals Caught Smuggling into South Korea via West Coast Since 2019

TAEAN, South Korea, Aug. 17 (Yonhap) -- More than 30 Chinese nationals have been rounded up since 2019 for allegedly smuggling into South Korea through the country's west coast, the Coast Guard said Monday.

From September 2019 through May this year, 31 Chinese nationals were apprehended in waters off Taean County or on its beaches, more than 100 kilometers southwest of Seoul, Coast Guard officials said.

In September 2019, three Chinese nationals were caught after arriving near a beach in Taean aboard a rubber boat, while another eight were apprehended last year after arriving in the county aboard a 4.3-meter-long boat.

In the latest incident, reported May 25 this year, Dong Guangping, a Chinese dissident, was apprehended in waters off Taean, marking the seventh illegal entry by Chinese nationals along the coast since late 2019. Dong, who had been jailed several times in China, was later allowed to leave South Korea. The New York Times reported that he arrived in Canada in June.

Coast Guard officials said that 25 of the 31 had previously worked in South Korea. Most had been deported for illegal stays and attempted to reenter South Korea illegally because they had no legal means of returning.

Most illegal entry attempts took place between April and May or September and October, when seas are calmer, making it easier to navigate the waters, according to officials.