Soldier in South Korea is convicted of trafficking 30 pounds of pot

[unhappycamper]

Soldier in South Korea is convicted of trafficking 30 pounds of pot
By Hwang Hae-rym and Teri Weaver , Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Friday, November 28, 2008

SEOUL — A U.S. soldier has been sentenced to five years in a South Korean prison on charges he helped traffic 30 pounds of marijuana into the country and assaulted two investigators during a sting operation in Itaewon, according South Korean court officials and documents.

Army Staff Sgt. Victor C. Aruwah, 28, of the 35th Air Defense Artillery at Osan Air Base, was convicted Nov. 21 on multiple charges, including drug trafficking, assault, and interference with government official duties, according to South Korean court and U.S. Army officials.

Aruwah, with the the artillery’s headquarters and headquarters battery, remains in U.S. custody, according to 8th U.S. Army spokesman Lt. Col. Jeff Buczkowski.

Aruwah is appealing the conviction in Incheon District Court, according to his lawyer, Lee Jang-han.

"He remains innocent," Lee said of his client in a phone interview earlier this week. "He said he happened to be at the wrong place and at the wrong time."


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=59098