This Oct. 10, 2023, file photo shows meth contained in plastic bags, confiscated from drug cartels based in Asia, at Yeongdeungpo Police Station in Seoul. A South African man was sentenced to 10 years in prison, Friday, for smuggling a large amount of meth from his country into Korea. Newsis

A South African man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for smuggling a significant quantity of methamphetamines from his country into Korea.

The Busan District Court on Friday convicted the man, in his 20s, of entering Korea through Gimhae International Airport in Busan on March 26 from Johannesburg with 1,944 grams of meth hidden in a book-shaped container.

If sold on the black market here, that quantity of synthetic stimulant is valued at approximately 200 million won ($145,000).

The man denied any intention of smuggling or selling the drug, saying that he was unaware of what was in the book-shaped wooden container and that he was simply doing his uncle a favor by bringing it here.

However, a panel of judges, led by Jang Ki-suk, rejected his claim, saying the evidence suggested that he was apparently aware of the illegal drug in the container. The court said drug trafficking, possibly carried out in collaboration with his accomplice overseas in this case, is considered a "grave crime" that could seriously undermine social order.

The number of drug crimes has increased at an alarming pace in Korea in recent years. A pan-government investigation team specializing in the field reported last month that the number of drug cases reported between April 2023 and March of this year was 28,572, a significant increase from 19,442 cases reported during the same period of 2023.

Just a day earlier, a non-commissioned officer of the Marine Corps was detained in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, on suspicion of using methamphetamines at his residence.