283 People Caught Violating Gathering Ban and Other Offenses in Illegal Entertainment Facility Crackdown Within One Week

Operating a Club in Restaurants and General Eateries with Doors Locked
Police Crackdown Until the 14th of This Month

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] As the police launched a large-scale crackdown on illegal entertainment establishments that have been a 'blind spot' in COVID-19 quarantine measures, more than 200 entertainment venues were caught by the police within a week.

According to the National Police Agency on the 1st, from the 25th to the 31st of last month, 887 police officers and 414 local government officials jointly inspected 7,200 entertainment establishments nationwide.

In the process, the police cracked down on a total of 43 cases involving 283 people for violations such as the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act. By type, there were 28 cases involving 254 people for violations of the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act, including violations of the assembly ban order; 9 cases involving 23 people for violations of the Food Sanitation Act; and 6 cases involving 6 people for violations of the Music Industry Act.

In Seoul, on the 26th of last month around 1 a.m., 31 people including the owner of an entertainment bar in Gwanak-gu were caught violating the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act by locking the doors and operating to avoid inspection.

Then, on the 31st at around 6:20 a.m., the owner of a general restaurant in Gangnam-gu was caught operating an unlicensed club by installing a DJ box, special lighting, and a stage, allowing customers to dance.

Also, in Goyang-si, Gyeonggi Province, 11 people including owners who hired entertainment workers and entertained reserved customers at a general restaurant were caught, and in Suwon, 33 people including owners of entertainment bars and foreign workers were caught for soliciting customers and operating the business.

The police will continue cracking down on illegal entertainment establishments until the 14th of this month, when the Lunar New Year holiday ends. The targets of the crackdown are establishments registered as karaoke rooms that are allowed to operate but are covertly running unlicensed entertainment bars, or those registered as general restaurants that evade inspection by operating in the form of unlicensed entertainment bars for reserved customers.

A National Police Agency official emphasized, "Illegal business operations are not simply violations of business types but cause serious disruption to quarantine efforts," adding, "We will thoroughly crack down and strictly punish offenders."

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