CCTV footage provided by the National Police Agency, shown on KBS news. (National Police Agency)
Three American women were taken into custody for illegal drug use after testing positive at a police station in Seoul on Tuesday.
The suspects had initially been taken to the station after causing a disturbance in a taxi, allegedly kicking and screaming.
According to the police, the suspects arrived at the police station dressed in swimsuits, and displayed abnormal behavior such as undressing and licking windows. The suspects also struggled with police officers who tried to cover them up, carrying on the disturbance for about two hours.
As the women did not smell of alcohol, the police ordered drug tests and requested cooperation from the narcotics unit. An instant drug test showed two of the women tested positive for methamphetamine, while the other woman tested positive for marijuana.
Use of illegal drugs, which includes marijuana in Korea, can be punished by imprisonment of up to 10 years or a fine of up to 100 million won ($77,315).
The Immigration Act stipulates that foreigners released after facing fines or imprisonment are subject to deportation from the country.
The suspects reportedly told the police that they drank water someone gave them at a water festival at Seoul Land in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province. However, the police reported that the women allegedly took drugs in their hotel rooms before attending the festival. The police confiscated the rest of the drugs they discovered at the hotel.
According to the police, the suspects were put into the taxi by festival staff who found them lying on the bathroom floor.
CCTV footage provided by the National Police Agency, shown on KBS news. (National Police Agency)
The police plan to hand over the suspects to the prosecution without detention after further investigations into possible drug smuggling and distribution.
According to the drug-related crime report published by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office on July 5, the number of crimes related to drugs hit a record high in 2022, which increased by 45.8 percent since 2018. The report showed an increase in the number of users, especially among foreigners and the younger generation. In 2022, 2,573 foreign nationals were arrested for drug-related crimes, a figure which has tripled in the last five years.
The counts of drug smuggling have also increased by 167 percent since 2018, totaling 1,392 in 2022.
"Foreign nationals account for only 14 percent of crimes related to illegal drug use, but for nearly 40 percent of crimes related to drug smuggling," the Supreme Prosecutors' Office reported.
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