DPRK DIPLOMATS CONVICTED TO 8 MONTH IN PRISON FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L STOCKHOLM 000790 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/22/2019 TAGS: PGOV PINR PREL SW SUBJECT: DPRK DIPLOMATS CONVICTED TO 8 MONTH IN PRISON FOR SMUGGLING COGARETTES REF: STOCKHOLM 746 Classified By: PolCouns Marc Koehler for reasons 1.4 (B) & (D). 1.(SBU) On December 16, two North Korean diplomats -- a man, Son Hui Kang, 53, and his wife, Ung Sik Pak, 54 -- were sentenced to eight months in prison for attempting to smuggle 230,200 cigarettes labeled as the U.S. brand "L&M" by ferry from Finland (reftel). Any appeal must be made by January 7, 2010; the couple will remain in custody in the meantime due to a perceived flight risk, according to press and law enforcement sources. ¶2. (SBU) The diplomats were traveling in a vehicle with Russian license plates and the cigarettes were covered with blankets and sheets in the back seat, according to court documents and press. When arrested, the couple protested and tried to claim diplomatic immunity -- to no avail as they were accredited to Russia, not Sweden. The judicial decision notes that the couple,s stories changed during the investigation. Ung Sik Pak asserted he was on his way to a meeting at the DPRK Embassy in Stockholm. He had information that a cargo container was departing from Stockholm to North Korea on November 23, and he was looking to send the Russian cigarettes, for which he paid 4,000 USD, as a "contribution" to governmental real-estate and power plant projects. He had earlier claimed that he would leave the cigarettes at the DPRK Embassy in Stockholm in exchange for money. His wife told investigators that the profit was intended for charity, but earlier said the profits would pay for her medical expenses. 3.(C) The Chief Investigator at Swedish Customs told Post,s local investigator that customs officials in charge of the case were subjected to "pressure" from representatives at the DPRK Embassy in Stockholm through "threatening" phone calls. SILVERMAN