Korea's drug problem? Woman crawls on all fours after alleged meth use

A woman in her 20s crawls on the ground near Suwon Station Rodeo Street in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, on Wednesday. She was later detained by police after testing positive for methamphetamine in a preliminary drug test. Captured from Yonhap News TV

A woman in her 20s has been booked by police in Korea after allegedly taking methamphetamine and displaying erratic behavior in a busy downtown area, including crawling on all fours, screaming and rolling on the ground.

According to the Suwon Paldal Police Station on Friday, officers responded to reports of a woman behaving strangely near Rodeo Street outside Suwon Station in Gyeonggi Province at around 9:20 a.m. Wednesday.

Police conducted a preliminary drug test at the scene, and the woman tested positive for methamphetamine. During questioning, she also admitted to using the drug, according to police.

Witnesses said the woman's behavior had drawn alarm from passersby. She was seen shouting loudly, repeatedly jumping in place and charging toward homeless people who were drinking on the street.

She also rolled on the ground and crawled along the pavement on all fours, behavior that prompted residents to report the incident to police.

Authorities said they first transferred the woman to her family because of concerns about her physical and mental condition before arranging for her to be placed under protective hospitalization.

Police said they are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the alleged drug use.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.