"90cm Janggeom Sword Sold Openly"... Gang Arrested for Illegal Online Sword Sales

Sales Worth 800 Million KRW Over 2 Years
Criminal Proceeds Recovery Measures Planned

A male operator in his 30s and a female employee in her 20s who illegally sold swords and knives online were arrested by the police.

59 swords and knives seized at the scene [Photo by Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency]

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced on the 29th that they had arrested operator Mr. A (30) and employee Ms. B (27) for illegally selling swords and knives without permission on major portal sites.

According to the police, they are suspected of illegally selling swords and knives with provocative advertisements while maintaining an office and warehouse in Mapo-gu, Seoul, and Namyangju, Gyeonggi-do, since the 20th of this month.

Mr. A had obtained a license to sell swords and knives in November 2020 but voluntarily reported business closure in May 2022, resulting in license cancellation. Despite this, he continued selling swords and knives on major portal sites. It was investigated that Mr. A made sales worth approximately 800 million KRW over two years of online sales.

During the investigation of the recent "Eunpyeong-gu Apartment Murder Case," the police discovered this company while tracing the distribution route of swords and knives and launched an investigation. As a result, on the 20th and 26th, they seized 59 swords and knives, including 34 tanto knives and 7 swords. Most of the seized blades were over 20 cm in length, including a long sword with a blade length of up to 90 cm.

The police currently plan to recover the total amount of criminal proceeds once the scale is identified and conduct a thorough investigation of unlicensed possession of swords and knives to encourage voluntary surrender.

A police official stated, "We will carefully examine the appropriateness of possession permits for swords and knives that have not yet been inspected," and added, "We will strongly crack down on illegal sales and advertisements of swords and knives through online monitoring."

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