Police to Crack Down on Drunk Driving During Year-End and New Year Holidays... Active Investigation of Aiding Acts

From December to the end of January next year
Over 22,000 caught in previous crackdowns
Vehicles may be confiscated for habitual drunk driving

On the evening of the 27th, police officers were conducting a drunk driving crackdown using a 'contactless breathalyzer' on a road in Mapo-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The National Police Agency announced on the 29th that it will conduct an intensive crackdown on drunk driving for two months from next month 1st until the end of January next year during the year-end and New Year holidays.

The police conducted a special crackdown on drunk driving from September to this month after a false perception spread that "drunk driving crackdowns have weakened" due to the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) this year. As a result, 22,023 drunk drivers were caught.

However, the police are closely monitoring the situation as fatal drunk driving accidents continue to occur and year-end and New Year drinking gatherings may increase. On the 6th of this month in Daegu, a drunk driver with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.116% crashed into the rear of a stationary sanitation vehicle, resulting in the death of a sanitation worker who was riding in the cargo bed.

Accordingly, the police will first conduct nationwide police stations' simultaneous crackdowns at least twice a week during vulnerable hours for two months and promote continuous crackdowns regardless of time, considering regional characteristics.

They will also actively punish accomplices such as passengers in drunk driving vehicles and continue to seize vehicles of habitual drunk drivers. During the previous crackdown period, the police booked 18 passengers on charges of aiding drunk driving and seized three vehicles of habitual drunk drivers.

In fact, in September in Seoul, a driver who was driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.175% and violated a traffic signal, causing a collision with another vehicle, was arrested along with a passenger who drank with the driver and handed over the car keys on charges of aiding. Also, in October in Gunsan, Jeonbuk, a driver who was caught drunk driving four times in the past three years was arrested for unlicensed and drunk driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.07%, and the vehicle was seized.

The police plan to create a culture of eradicating drunk driving through promotional activities using social network services (SNS) and media around daily life such as public transportation facilities along with crackdowns. A National Police Agency official said, "A moment of drunk driving is a serious crime that destroys not only individuals but also families and society," urging drivers' interest and participation in eradicating drunk driving.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.