Police Crack Down on 'Illegal Entertainment Venues' for 12 Weeks, Arrest 6,700 People... Caught During Chuseok Holiday as Well

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] Amid the rapid spread of COVID-19, illegal operations of entertainment establishments have continued, resulting in the detection of over 6,000 violators during three months of crackdowns.

According to the National Police Agency on the 27th, from July 3 to the 26th of this month, over 12 weeks, 38,235 police officers were deployed to jointly inspect 86,521 entertainment establishments nationwide in cooperation with local governments.

During this process, 956 cases of illegal activities including violations of quarantine guidelines and 6,753 individuals were caught. By type, there were 661 cases and 6,027 individuals violating the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act such as gathering bans, 50 cases and 450 individuals violating the Food Sanitation Act, and 245 cases and 276 individuals violating the Music Industry Act.

On the 23rd at around 11:20 p.m., at a Danranjoojeom (karaoke bar) located in Jongno-gu, Seoul, 10 people including the owner and customers were caught operating secretly after turning off the signboard lights and locking the door. Then, at 12:15 a.m. on the 25th in Gangnam-gu, 22 people including the owner who rented a villa and employed seven entertainment workers to operate an unlicensed entertainment bar were caught. In Daegu, based on crackdowns on illegal entertainment bars, six owners operating unregistered job placement agencies known as "Bodobang" were booked following a follow-up investigation.

Notably, a significant number of entertainment establishments were caught operating illegally even during the Chuseok holiday. The Incheon Police Agency conducted a comprehensive inspection of 172 entertainment establishments on the 18th and 19th, when the holiday began, and caught 41 individuals in six cases of violations including the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act.

As the number of confirmed cases continues to rise, exceeding 3,000 after the Chuseok holiday, the police plan to continue special crackdowns for the time being. The main targets for enforcement are ▲ unlicensed (variant) operations ▲ violations of gathering bans and restriction orders ▲ other quarantine rule violations ▲ sale of alcohol and employment of hostesses at singing practice rooms. The police are conducting continuous inspections and crackdowns on establishments already caught, reporting tax data to the National Tax Service, and actively pursuing enforcement by proving conspiratorial relationships and booking owners when they are absent from the scene.

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