Number of Teenage Drug Offenders in Seoul Surges Fivefold to 235 Last Year

A drug-sniffing dog checking a suitcase at Incheon International Airport. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Feb. 15 (Korea Bizwire) – The number of teenagers caught for drug-related charges in Seoul spiked to 235 last year from 48 a year earlier, police data showed Thursday.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency released the data during a seminar held jointly with the Korean Association Against Drug Abuse to discuss ways to respond to growing drug use among minors.

The five-fold increase is notable as the annual number had stayed between 40 and 60 from 2019-2022.

The police data also showed that 249 teenagers were caught in Seoul between August 2022 and the end of last year, and 184 of them, or 73.9 percent, were women.

By drug type, psychotropic drugs, including anorectic agents and tranquilizers, accounted for 84.7 percent, with marijuana and other drugs trailing far behind at 14.5 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively.

Police suspect that teens feel less guilty of using psychotropic medications compared to other drugs.

Police proposed treatment and counseling sessions for 46 offenders, but only 17 of them took part in the program.

(Yonhap)