Government Deports 9,800 'Illegal Foreigners' Including Drug Offenders

The government announced on the 12th that it conducted a joint crackdown on illegal foreign residents, resulting in approximately 9,800 people being deported or otherwise expelled. Among them were some drug and gambling offenders. Including those illegal foreign residents who voluntarily left during the crackdown period, about 18,000 people were expelled.

[Photo by Ministry of Justice]

On the same day, the Ministry of Justice issued a press release stating that from April 15 to June 30, a government joint crackdown on illegal foreign residents and immigration offenders was conducted, uncovering a total of 12,841 individuals: 10,756 illegal foreign residents, 2,063 illegal employers, and 22 illegal employment and entry brokers. The joint crackdown involved the Ministry of Justice, the National Police Agency, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of Employment and Labor, and the Korea Coast Guard.

Among the total 10,756 illegal foreign residents and workers, 9,784 were deported or otherwise expelled, and 444 were fined. Notably, during this process, 25 illegal foreign residents involved in foreigner-related crimes were uncovered, including 23 drug and gambling offenders and 2 involved in the distribution of illegally registered vehicles. The Ministry of Justice plans to deport and ban their re-entry once criminal procedures are completed.

Regarding the 2,063 employers who illegally hired these individuals, fines totaling approximately 10 billion KRW were imposed. Among the 22 illegal employment and entry brokers uncovered, 3 were detained, 7 were released without detention, and 2 were fined.

The number of illegal foreign residents peaked at 430,000 in October last year but slightly decreased to 414,000 as of last month.

Park Seong-jae, Minister of Justice, stated, "We will continue to maintain a consistent crackdown policy not only on illegal foreign residents but also on immigration offenders who threaten public safety and encourage illegal residency, doing our utmost to establish strict residency order."

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