This photo, provided by Yonhap News TV, shows police patrolling the streets. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Oct. 26 (Korea Bizwire) — Police said Thursday they will launch a crackdown on those wearing or selling police costumes during Halloween week to prevent confusion with real police officers on duty.
The National Police Agency said they have been monitoring transactions of police costumes online, including on portal sites and secondhand markets, and plan to have such posts deleted until Nov. 5. They will also clamp down on offline black market dealings involving police uniforms and accessories.
The current law stipulates that it is illegal for people who are not police officers to wear their uniforms or posses police equipment. If violated, it is punishable by up to six months in prison, or with fines of up to 3 million won (US$ 2,214). The sellers can receive prison sentences of up to one year, or as much as 10 million won in fines.
The police said they have deleted 42 posts as of October, after inspecting 51 online sites since Halloween last year, and have apprehended 19 people for wearing police costumes or accessories.
Officials also warned against wearing adult costumes that could confuse people.
Last year, many people were dressed up as police officers during Halloween, resulting in a late police response to the crowd crush in Itaewon due to people mistaking officers on duty for ordinary citizens.
(Yonhap)
