Teenagers who sold and administered fentanyl patches, a narcotic analgesic 100 times stronger than morphine, have been arrested.
[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Ju Cheol-in] Dozens of teenagers, including high school students, who prescribed and sold or used narcotic painkillers 100 times stronger than morphine, were arrested by the police in large numbers.
The Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency's Narcotics Crime Investigation Unit announced on the 21st that they arrested A (19) on charges of drug trafficking and booked 41 teenagers who used drugs together without detention.
A is suspected of prescribing fentanyl patches, a narcotic painkiller, under his own or others' names at hospitals and pharmacies in Busan and Gyeongnam from June last year to April this year, selling them to other teenagers or using them directly.
The other teenagers used the drugs not only in parks and shopping mall restrooms but also inside schools. Fentanyl patches are powerful narcotic painkillers in the opioid family, like opium and morphine.
They are used by attaching one patch to the skin for three days to relieve pain for patients experiencing long-lasting continuous pain, such as terminal cancer patients.
They committed the crimes by purchasing and distributing fentanyl after obtaining prescriptions.
First, about 14 people obtained prescriptions at hospitals to purchase fentanyl, then handed it over to three sellers, who sold it again for use.
When visiting hospitals, they reportedly received prescriptions without proper identity verification by saying things like "my back hurts" or "I am scheduled for disc surgery."
They also used others' identities instead of their own during medical visits, but since medical institutions did not conduct proper verification, they were able to obtain prescriptions easily.
The hospitals and clinics that issued diagnosis certificates were 25 locations around Gyeongnam and Busan. Fentanyl patches come in packs of 10 sheets priced around 150,000 KRW, but when sold to students, the price soared to 150,000 KRW per sheet.
The suspects formed groups of peers in the region and used fentanyl in groups of several people, purchasing fentanyl from as few as once to as many as 57 times per person. Some users showed typical addiction and withdrawal symptoms, such as complaining of body pain.
During the investigation, the police seized 27 illegally prescribed fentanyl patches and inhalation tools to block distribution among teenagers.
A police official said, "Narcotic drugs are distributed within a systematic system, so misuse and abuse inevitably lead to arrest," adding, "As the age of contact with narcotics is getting lower, prevention education on narcotics misuse and abuse is needed at schools and homes."
The police stated they will strengthen crackdowns on illegal narcotics prescriptions and thoroughly investigate whether there are additional cases of narcotics distribution among teenagers.
They also added that they will cooperate with related agencies such as the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to propose system improvements and request narcotics misuse prevention education from education offices, striving to prevent juvenile narcotics crimes.
According to the Narcotics Control Act, trafficking narcotics is punishable by life imprisonment or imprisonment for five years or more, possession of narcotics by imprisonment for one year or more, and using narcotics by imprisonment for up to 10 years or a fine of up to 100 million KRW.
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