Seoul Police to Launch Special Crackdown on Drug Offenders Starting Tomorrow... All Detectives Mobilized

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced on the 13th that it will conduct a special crackdown on drug-related offenders from the 14th until October 31st to eradicate drug crimes. This crackdown will be carried out concurrently with the second half of the year’s intensive drug offender crackdown scheduled by the National Police Agency starting next month on the 1st.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency plans to deploy all criminal investigation personnel, including a total of 88 dedicated drug investigation officers from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s Drug Crime Investigation Unit and each police station. In particular, the crackdown will prioritize targeting supply and distribution offenders, focusing on "offenders based overseas." The Drug Crime Investigation Unit will focus on supply and distribution offenders, while police stations will mainly target drug users.

During the crackdown period, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency will concentrate on apprehending overseas drug suppliers through international cooperation such as Interpol red notices and collaboration with overseas attach?s. For drug distribution and sales organizations, the agency will apply the "organized crime group statute," and recover criminal proceeds through pre-prosecution seizure and confiscation measures. This is part of a blueprint to dismantle drug organizations.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency also plans to intensively crack down on crimes committed by foreigners, especially in areas with high concentrations of foreign residents, through the Drug Crime Investigation Unit and others. This is due to the recent increase in organized drug distribution and usage offenses by foreigners, as well as the expected rise in foreign drug smuggling crimes caused by visa-free entry allowances in regions such as Jeju and Gangwon, and the legalization of cannabis cultivation in ordinary households in Thailand.

Additionally, to respond to the increase in drug distribution offenses using the internet (dark web), social media, and virtual assets, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency will actively utilize tracking programs and strengthen training for investigators to enhance their tracking capabilities against new methods. Furthermore, in line with the trend of younger drug offenders and the misuse of drugs obtained through illegal prescriptions, the agency plans to reinforce drug crime prevention education for youth and conduct focused inspections of hospitals and clinics suspected of drug misuse in collaboration with the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

This special crackdown comes in response to the continuous increase in drug-related incidents following the lifting of COVID-19 social distancing measures. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency stated, "Drug addicts who voluntarily surrender to police stations may receive treatment opportunities or leniency during criminal proceedings," and urged citizens to actively report drug crimes, assuring that their identities will be strictly protected and that a certain amount of reward will be provided for reports.

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