Due to the Impact of COVID-19, 'Untact Transactions' of Narcotics Surge... Drug Offenders in Their 10s and 20s Also Increase

Assemblyman Park Wanju "Measures Needed to Crack Down on Online Activities"

Assemblyman Park Wanju.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] Since the spread of COVID-19 last year, 'untact' drug transactions and drug offenders in their teens and twenties have significantly increased.

According to data submitted by the National Police Agency to Park Wan-joo, a member of the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, the number of drug offenders arrested last year was 12,209, an increase of about 38% compared to 8,853 in 2016.

During the same period, the number of drug offenders active on the internet and social networking services (SNS) rose from 1,120 to 2,608, an increase of 133%. It appears that the impact of COVID-19 has extended to drug trafficking scenes.

In particular, it negatively affected those in their teens and twenties, who are familiar with online environments. The number of teenage drug offenders was only 81 in 2016 but surged 191% to 241 last year. Drug offenders in their twenties also increased by 141%, from 1,327 to 3,211 during the same period.

Rep. Park said, "The drug market conducted online is harder to crack down on than offline, so urgent measures need to be established," adding, "To eradicate drug offenses among teenagers and people in their twenties early, it is necessary to promote the harmfulness of drugs and implement effective drug prevention education."

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