Police Arrest 2,600 People in 3-Month 'Drug Crackdown'... 614 Detained

Lower Age of Drug Exposure
Combination of SNS, Dark Web, and Cryptocurrency

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] The National Police Agency's National Investigation Headquarters announced on the 15th that it conducted an intensive crackdown on drug offenders for three months from March to the end of last month, arresting 2,616 people and detaining 614. The police also seized illegal profits worth 62 million won and recovered about 300 million won, including virtual currency, through pre-indictment seizure and preservation.

The most common drugs seized were psychotropic drugs (Philopon, synthetic marijuana, ecstasy, etc.) with 1,793 people (68.3%). This was followed by marijuana (marijuana, hashish oil, etc.) with 625 people (23.8%) and narcotics (opium, cocaine, fentanyl, etc.) with 208 people (7.9%).

By type of offense, drug use offenders accounted for the largest number with 1,948 people (74.2%), but there were also a significant number of drug sales offenders (538), smuggling (116), and manufacturing/smuggling (24).

The number of drug offenders using the internet was 892 (34.0%), an increase of 21.4% compared to the previous year. The police explained that due to the expansion of non-face-to-face transactions caused by COVID-19, drug distribution combining social networking services (SNS), the dark web, and virtual currency could spread.

The number of foreign offenders also increased to 432 (16.5%) compared to last year's 12%, and medical drug offenders accounted for 180 (6.9%). By age group, those in their 20s accounted for 36.1% (947 people), followed by those in their 30s at 24.5% (644 people). Notably, the proportion of teenagers to people in their 20s reached 40%, up from 28.3% last year.

The police currently operate a specialized investigation team for the dark web and virtual assets within the drug crime investigation divisions of six metropolitan and provincial police agencies. In addition, other metropolitan and provincial police agencies are actively responding to drug distribution activities exploiting new methods such as the dark web through monitoring and intelligence gathering.

Through this crackdown, the police confirmed that drugs are permeating society overall, including the expansion of drug distribution using the internet, misuse due to lax management of medical drugs, and increased drug distribution among foreign residents in Korea.

Considering especially that the age of contact with drugs is gradually lowering, it is necessary to establish preventive safety measures such as youth-targeted education not only by investigative agencies but also by educational institutions and local governments across various sectors of society.

A National Police Agency official stated, "We plan to maintain close cooperation with related agencies such as the prosecution, Customs Service, National Intelligence Service, and Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, and to carry out intensive year-round crackdowns to eradicate drug distribution. We will also strive to cut off drug distribution chains by thoroughly tracking criminal proceeds and actively implementing pre-indictment seizure and confiscation."