Police to crack down on drug abuse at nightclubs

A police officer loads seized articles into a vehicle after the search and seizure of Burning Sun nightclub in southern Seoul on Feb. 14. / Yonhap

By Kim Jae-heun

In the wake of drug-linked rape allegations at a Gangnam-based nightclub, police are set to all-out combat narcotics circulation.

According to the Korean National Police Agency (KNPA) Sunday, it will conduct a three-month intensive crackdown on drug-related crimes, mobilizing all narcotics agents across the country, until April.

"The police will put out all its effort to eradicate crime using illegal drugs through this intensive control," a police officer said. "We will also actively protect the identity of those making reports as they are important in solving the issue at hand and will make sure that they are protected with anonymity."

Some 1,063 police officers are likely to take part in the crackdown, including investigators, cyber police and officers in charge of sex crimes.

The move came after staff at Burning Sun allegedly helped its VIP customers rape young women after drugging them with gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid (GHB).

The main target of the investigation is foreign drug traffickers disguised as tourists, who distribute illegal substances through online platforms and social media here. They have been selling propofol, zolpidem and medical cannabis regularly.

Police will search for date rape drugs, in particular, which are used to incapacitate women before sexual assault.

Police see a "crime cartel" forming through the medium of illegal drugs, which causes a sequence of unlawful activities, including smuggling, corruption, rape and recreational drug use.

When a case related to drug crimes is reported to the police station, "code 1" will be issued, which is considered urgent. When a sex crime involving illegal drugs is reported, the police will issue "code 0," which is considered of utmost urgency, and narcotic agents as well as a special investigation team will be dispatched together.

Intensive crackdowns will take place at particular venues reportedly circulating illegal drugs.

Victims of sexual violence using date rape drugs will be aided with a public defender to take legal action against offenders.

The Burning Sun scandal rose to the surface last month when a 29-year-old man name Kim Sang-kyo claimed he was beat up by the staff there and even more seriously by the police in November.

Kim said he attempted to help a woman who was being sexually harassed at the nightclub.

During the investigation, another allegation revealed circulation of GHB at the venue and that staffers there have actively engaged in drugging young women to assist VIP customers to rape them.

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