Launch of Special Investigation Unit for Drug Crimes After Gangnam Academy District Incident
Export Approval in 2022... Domestic Approval in Preparation
South Korea has literally entered a 'war on drugs.' The government plans to make every effort to prevent drug abuse and track down criminals at the national level. Accordingly, BodytechMed, which operates drug diagnostic cartridges and rapid drug test kits, is receiving significant attention.
President Yoon Seok-yeol ordered a full-scale response to related crimes following the drug beverage incident in the Gangnam academy district. On the 11th, the government launched a special investigation headquarters for drug crimes involving the prosecution, police, customs service, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, and local governments.
Accordingly, the National Police Agency established and operates a joint drug crackdown task force, with the head of the National Police Agency's Investigation Headquarters and the chiefs of each metropolitan and provincial police agency directly responsible. On the 12th, Police Chief Yoon Hee-geun promised large-scale promotions and ordered an all-out war within the organization to eradicate drug crimes.
On the 12th, it was reported that Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon instructed the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to restore its drug investigation division to strengthen the prosecution's investigative capabilities against drug crimes. Currently, the Anti-Corruption and Violent Crimes Division of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office handles special investigations, drugs, and organized crime all at once. The plan is to reorganize this division to create a 'Drug and Violent Crimes Division' dedicated to drug and violent crime investigations. Since the reorganization of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office is not a legislative matter, it can be implemented solely by the minister's directive.
As the government declares war on drugs and the public becomes increasingly alert to drug issues, a product gaining attention is the drug diagnostic kit. As drugs become more rampant domestically, the number of drug diagnostic tests conducted by both public and private sectors is expected to increase.
In fact, the Ministry of Economy and Finance recently requested the National Police Agency to review an increase in the budget related to drug investigations. It is unusual for the Ministry of Economy and Finance to order budget increases to frontline ministries. Additionally, in February, the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology and Jobs recruited pharmaceutical companies capable of mass-producing GHB (commonly known as "water drug") test kits. At that time, a representative from the institute said, "The drug diagnostic kit prototype has already been developed," and "We have received several inquiries regarding the business promotion system and performance value."
The police stated that once a pharmaceutical company for mass production of drug test kits is selected, they plan to distribute the kits to some police departments, such as the criminal investigation division, as part of a pilot project within this year. A police official said, "Until now, we purchased kits developed overseas and distributed them to field officers, but there was a budget burden in purchasing kits annually," adding, "If drug detection kits developed with domestic technology are distributed, it will reduce costs and greatly aid drug investigations."
BodytechMed has already commercialized drug diagnostic cartridge products and is developing rapid diagnostic kits. BodytechMed has completed research and development of the ichroma™ mAMP/COC/THC items. According to BodytechMed, these cartridge items qualitatively analyze methamphetamine, cocaine, and marijuana present in human urine using fluorescence immunoassay (FIA) to diagnose the respective drugs. Furthermore, to reduce diagnostic time, BodytechMed is also developing rapid diagnostic kits for narcotics. The ichroma™ mAMP/COC/THC cartridges received export approval in 2022 and are currently preparing for domestic approval, now at the clinical planning stage.
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