Ketamine ring busted after Taipei university lab explodes

台北的大學實驗室爆炸後，搗破K他命集團

Manufacturers used legitimate biotech company as front, imported NT$40 million worth of equipment


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Prosecutors said on Tuesday (July 11) that 12 people have been arrested in connection to a drug operation, in an investigation set in motion after a university lab where ketamine was being made exploded in March 2022.

Prosecutors revealed that the man in charge of the operation also ran Taipei-based Pin Siang Medical Biotechnology Co., which produced legal medicines. According to an investigation, a 48-year-old man surnamed Chang (張) imported NT$40 million (US$1.27 million) worth of equipment and materials to manufacture ketamine, and began manufacturing operations in multiple locations around Taiwan.

After an explosion occurred at a laboratory rented from Taipei’s Datung University, police found ketamine and materials used for its manufacture, after which they began a wider investigation. The university said that it had deemed the lease to be from a trustworthy source, and did not know about the ketamine operation.

The investigation eventually led police to search a warehouse connected to a biotechnology company in May, where they found three tons of a ketamine precursor chemical. The chemical could be used to manufacture 300 kilograms of the drug, worth about NT$1.5 million (US$48,700).

Chang was arrested on May 31, 2022, along with 12 others involved in the operation. The investigation also revealed that Chang used the laboratory in Pin Siang Medical Biotechnology Co., located in Taipei’s Neihu Science Park, to develop the technology and processes needed to manufacture the ketamine.

Police said that preliminary estimations indicate NT$450 million in profit was made from the operation. Four of the arrested remain in custody, including Chang, while the other suspects were released on bail of between NT$30,000-50,000.