National Police Agency Allocates 13.17 Billion KRW Budget for Strengthening Crime Response Next Year

Supply of New Anti-Cut Suits to Riot Police
Expansion of Electronic Shock Device Shooting Training

The National Police Agency announced on the 22nd that it has prepared a budget of 13.17 billion KRW for next year to strengthen frontline crime response capabilities, including the distribution of new stab-resistant uniforms and the expansion of electronic shock device training.

First, 1.6 billion KRW will be invested to supply stab-resistant uniforms, telescopic batons, and other safety equipment for weapon response to police riot squads working in densely crowded places to prevent crime. The riot squads, which primarily handled crowd and protest control duties, will now be encouraged to respond more actively to the recent frequent incidents of weapon rampages and crimes with abnormal motives.

The new stab-resistant uniforms to be distributed from next year have significantly improved weight and safety compared to the previous versions. The weight has been reduced from 2.7 kg to less than 1.8 kg, and the design has been enhanced to evenly distribute the weight across the upper body, reducing the burden of wearing it for extended periods. The police plan to prioritize distribution to 101 riot squads across eight metropolitan city and provincial police agencies in the Seoul metropolitan area and other major cities where security demands are high.

Additionally, the National Police Agency will invest 9.3 billion KRW, an increase of 3.1 billion KRW from this year, to raise the number of live-fire electronic shock device training rounds from two to three per person annually. Electronic shock devices allow immediate response at crime scenes and minimize casualties, making them highly useful in the field. The frequency of electronic shock device use has been increasing annually, so the decision was made to increase training sessions to enhance field response capabilities.

Furthermore, the National Police Agency allocated 1.7 billion KRW to introduce a "smart shooting training system" that supplements current training limitations by simulating the weight and recoil of real firearms. This system uses a Full HD screen target called a "smart target," which can be installed anywhere, and employs safe replica bullets, allowing autonomous training without restrictions on time or place. Starting next year, it will be gradually distributed over five years to 90 police stations without live-fire shooting ranges and to police substations nationwide.

A budget of 570 million KRW has been allocated for the operation of offices and safety equipment support for the "Mental Emergency Police Response Teams," which have been expanded nationwide since October last year. These teams are responsible for emergency hospitalization referrals for mentally ill patients who pose a risk of self-harm or harm to others, with 18 teams and 96 personnel working nationwide. Recently, abnormal motive crimes committed by mentally ill individuals have become a controversial issue, leading to a significant increase in emergency hospitalization requests and a growing workload for the response teams.

Meanwhile, the details of this budget plan will be finalized after review by the National Assembly.

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