'Throwing' Trend of Hiding and Searching in Specific Places
Police Plan to Install Hidden Cameras for Crime Prevention
Recently, cases of the 'throw-and-go method,' where drug sellers and buyers agree in advance on a location to leave drugs and later retrieve them, have been on the rise. In Gwangju, individuals who distributed drugs using this method were sentenced to prison.
According to the legal community on the 26th, the Gwangju District Court Criminal Division 12 (Chief Judge Kim Sang-gyu) sentenced A (32) and B (32), who were indicted for violating the Narcotics Control Act (psychotropic substances and marijuana), to prison terms ranging from 2 years and 6 months to 10 months with probation.
A and others are accused of repeatedly purchasing and using methamphetamine and synthetic marijuana in Gwangju between February and March of this year. They contacted drug sellers through internet searches and Telegram, and paid for the drugs using Bitcoin. They also used the 'throw-and-go' method, where the drug supplier hides drugs at specific locations for pickup. The places where drugs were found this time included under the eaves of houses, air conditioner outdoor units, and underground in playgrounds.
Earlier in May, C (31), a Chinese national, was arrested on charges of distributing drugs using a communication terminal box in a multi-family house without a lock. Buyers who contacted C searched places such as terminal boxes, mailboxes, and under stair railings. Suspicious residents reported this, and subsequent police investigations revealed that C distributed enough drugs for about 5,000 people to use.
Unrelenting 'Throw-and-Go Method'... Police Plan to Install Hidden Cameras
As the 'throw-and-go method' has appeared even in citizens' living spaces, the police are reportedly planning to install hidden cameras at various sites to crack down on this. They plan to place cameras disguised as fire extinguishers, toolboxes, wall clocks, and other forms at locations suspected of drug distribution, and arrest suspects immediately on-site when actual transactions occur.
According to the budget request details submitted to the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee by Lee Hae-sik of the Democratic Party on the 18th, the National Police Agency is negotiating to allocate about 1.1 billion KRW for the supply of on-site equipment such as hidden cameras for drug use surveillance in next year's budget.
The police expect that installing hidden cameras will help prevent crimes by enabling real-time monitoring of drug distribution and usage sites and making evidence collection easier.
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