Charged with Purchasing Marijuana and Providing It to 6 High School Students
Court Sentences to Prison in First Trial... "Extremely Bad Nature of Crime"
A group who deceived minors into smoking synthetic marijuana by disguising it as electronic cigarettes was sentenced to prison in the first trial.
According to the legal community on the 16th, A (21), B (20), C (19), and D (16), who are seniors and juniors in the neighborhood, purchased synthetic marijuana, a psychotropic drug, from drug dealers between March and April this year.
They provided synthetic marijuana to six high school students, misleading them into thinking it was an electronic cigarette, and forced them to smoke it by confiscating their phones and threatening them if they refused to smoke.
During the investigation, A and his group reportedly stated that “the crime was committed with the intention of addicting high school students to synthetic marijuana so that they would continue to purchase drugs and generate profit.”
Accordingly, the Criminal Division 11 of Suwon District Court (Presiding Judge Shin Jin-woo) sentenced A (21), who was indicted for providing drugs to minors for profit under the Narcotics Control Act, to 10 years in prison, and B (20) to 8 years in prison. C (19) was sentenced to 6 years in prison, and D (16) was sentenced to 3 years short-term and 5 years long-term imprisonment for the same charges.
The court stated, “This crime targeted minors who are still in the stage of physical and mental development and deserve protection as objects for profit acquisition,” and “The defendants’ crimes are extremely serious as there is a risk of causing severe physical and mental harm to the victims.”
It added, “The defendants planned the crime themselves, divided roles, and committed the crime in an organized manner, and also destroyed evidence after being discovered, which makes them highly blameworthy.” However, it noted, “Considering that the profits gained from the crime were not large, the defendants admitted the crime and showed signs of remorse, and their social ties are relatively clear.”
According to the recent ‘Monthly Narcotics Trend’ by the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, as of September, 20,230 drug offenders were detected. This is the first time the number of drug detections in Korea has exceeded 20,000 since related statistics began to be announced. Among them, drug offenders under the age of 20 reached 988 as of last September, more than double the 450 recorded two years ago. The number of offenders in their 20s also increased by about 15%, from 5,077 to 5,817 during the same period.
In fact, in April, an incident occurred in the academy district of Daechi-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, where an unspecified number of high school students were made to drink beverages containing drugs under false pretenses and were threatened. The final confirmed number of victims in this case reached 19 (13 minors and 6 parents).
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
