135 People Caught Illegally Cultivating Poppies at Homes and Hillsides

Busan Police Agency Seizes 3,028 Opium Poppies

Residents who secretly cultivated poppies in residential areas and hills in Busan were caught by the police.

The Busan Metropolitan Police Agency announced on the 8th that, as a result of a focused crackdown on narcotics from March to May, 135 people who secretly cultivated poppies were booked without detention, and 3,028 poppy plants were seized.

According to the police, 387 reports related to narcotics were received during this period, of which 26.9% (104 cases) were reports of illegal poppy cultivation.

On April 27, the police arrested a man in his 70s, Mr. A, on suspicion of cultivating 120 poppy plants in a hill garden in Gangseo-gu, Busan. Also, on the 2nd of last month, a man in his 70s, Mr. B, suspected of cultivating 80 poppy plants in a vacant lot in a residential area in Yeonje-gu, was sent to the prosecution without detention.

Opium poppies cultivated in a vacant lot in a residential area of Yeonje-gu. [Image source=Busan Police Agency]

Poppies have long been used as food and in folk medicine, but alkaloid substances extracted from poppy seeds are used as raw materials for manufacturing various narcotics, so cultivation is prohibited.

Anyone who cultivates, purchases, or uses poppies without proper narcotics handling qualifications or permits faces imprisonment of up to 5 years or a fine of up to 50 million won.

The police stated, “Regardless of the quantity or purpose of cultivation, if one knowingly cultivates poppies, they will be subject to criminal punishment in principle, so we urge special caution.”