Rapid Increase in Drug Offenders... Number of Arrests Surpasses 20,000 for the First Time

Half in Their 20s and 30s... Increasing Trends Among Teens, Women, and Foreigners

It has been revealed that the number of drug offenders caught over the nine months up to September this year has exceeded 20,000. This is the first time since statistics began that the number of drug arrests in South Korea has surpassed 20,000.

According to the 'Monthly Drug Trend Report for September 2023' released by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office on the 25th, the number of drug offenders apprehended up to the end of last September was 20,230. This represents a 47.6% increase (6,552 people) compared to the same period last year, and it is also higher than the total number of 18,395 arrests made throughout last year.

Until April, the number of drug offenders remained between 1,200 and 1,500 per month, but starting in May (1,807 people), the numbers began to rise. The figures then surged in June (2,858 people) and July (4,220 people), before slightly decreasing in August and September to 3,715 and 2,043 people respectively, compared to July.

This trend is interpreted as being influenced by the launch of the Special Investigation Headquarters for Drug Crimes led by the prosecution in April and the government's declaration of a 'War on Drugs.'

By age group, those in their 20s (5,817 people) and 30s (4,634 people) accounted for more than half of the total. The number of teenagers also increased significantly. The number of teenage drug offenders (988 people) more than doubled compared to the annual figure last year (481 people), reaching an all-time high. The number of drug offenders under the age of 15, which was only 6 in 2021, rose to 41 last year and reached 68 as of September this year.

The number of female drug offenders also increased significantly. Up to September this year, 6,670 female offenders were caught, far exceeding the 4,966 apprehended throughout last year. For the first time, women accounted for more than 30% of all drug offenders.

The number of foreign offenders has nearly tripled over the past five years. In 2018, there were 948 foreign offenders, which increased to 2,339 in 2021, and 2,294 were apprehended up to September this year.

Along with this, the amount of drugs smuggled into the country from overseas has also increased significantly. According to the Ministry of Justice, the amount of drugs seized during smuggling in 2020 was 242.3 kg, but it increased nearly fivefold to 1,184 kg in 2021. The amount of drugs seized up to August this year was recorded at 518.9 kg.