SEOUL, March 16 (AJP) - The National Police Agency announced Saturday that it will conduct a 15-week intensive crackdown on major public safety crimes, including drug trafficking and voice phishing, until Jun. 30.
The National Police Agency said it will prioritize crackdown on key drug distribution channels such as online platforms, nightlife districts, and areas with high concentrations of undocumented foreigners.
As part of the initiative, the existing "Dark Web and Virtual Asset Drug Investigation Teams" operating in local police agencies will be reorganized into the "Online Drug Investigation Task Force," strengthening efforts to combat drug distribution through digital networks.
Authorities highlighted a concerning rise in drug-related offenses among people in their teens to 30s, noting that this group accounted for 63.4 percent of drug offenders last year, a 5.6 percentage point increase from the previous year.
Starting in April, a joint government task force comprising the National Police Agency, Supreme Prosecutors' Office, Korea Coast Guard, Korea Customs Service, and Ministry of Justice will be deployed to conduct special crackdowns in nightlife areas, foreigner-dense districts, and at airports and seaports.
The police also plan to focus on the illegal distribution of medical narcotics and the unauthorized cultivation of opium poppies and cannabis, which are entering their blooming and harvest seasons.
Additionally, the crackdown will target voice phishing operations, with an emphasis on money laundering organizations that use foreign exchange and virtual assets to obscure financial trails. Investigators will pursue high-level criminal syndicates, applying organized crime and criminal conspiracy charges to ensure severe legal penalties.
Last year, the police arrested 21,833 suspects related to voice phishing schemes and seized or blocked more than 220,000 crime-related tools, including malicious apps and fraudulent bank accounts.
The authorities also noted a surge in 'account transfer-type' scams, where perpetrators exploit corporate bank accounts to facilitate fraudulent transactions. This method accounted for 48 percent of phishing crimes in 2023, up 26 percentage points from the previous year.
The police will continue ongoing crackdowns on illegal private loans (Nov. 1, 2023–Oct. 31, 2024) and deepfake-related sex crimes (Aug. 28, 2023–Mar. 31, 2025).
Woo Jong-soo, head of the National Office of Investigation, stated, "Drug crimes, phishing, illegal financing, and deepfake-related offenses are serious social issues that require strong countermeasures. We will continue to implement high-intensity enforcement measures."
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