In this photo provided by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, young gang members are seen having a ‘meetup’ at a bar.
SEOUL, July 27 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of gangsters aged 10 to 30, also known as “MZ generation gangs,” is increasing.
The National Police Agency’s National Investigation Headquarters on Wednesday reported that 1,589 gang members were arrested and 313 were placed in custody during a four-month special crackdown on organized crime.
Out of those arrested, 57.8 percent were under 30 years old, while 25.1 percent were in their 40s, and 17.1 percent were in their 50s or older.
The police stated that the younger generation of gang members, connected through a nationwide network on online social media platforms, has replaced the previous generation, which mostly consisted of individuals in their 40s and 50s.
As per police records, the number of newly recruited gang members increased from 136 in 2020 to 203 in 2021 and 244 last year, with a significant majority coming from the young generation.
The number of apprehended teenage gang members dropped slightly from 154 in 2020 to 98 in 2021 but then increased to 210 last year.
Among the arrested gang members, 45.5 percent had more than nine previous offenses on file, while only 8 percent committed their first offense.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
