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Three individuals referred to prosecutors for smuggling narcotic medicines

Published: 02 Sep. 2025, 16:43 Updated: 02 Sep. 2025, 17:38

Teenagers and people in their 20s who meet through social media gather to overconsume narcotic medicines with alcohol and hold hallucination parties. [JOONGANG ILBO]

BUSAN — Customs officials referred three people, including two in their 20s and one teenager, to prosecutors after they repeatedly smuggled narcotic medicines into Korea through overseas purchases and shared methods of misuse on social media, Busan Main Customs said on Tuesday.

Busan Main Customs said that it had sent the three to prosecutors without detention on charges of violating the Act on the Control of Narcotics.

A 23-year-old university student in Busan bought 2,188 pills containing codeine and dextromethorphan from the United States and Japan and smuggled them into Korea 17 times via international mail.

High doses of codeine can cause euphoria, drowsiness and respiratory depression, while high doses of dextromethorphan can produce effects such as hallucinations, altered perception of time, impaired motor function and out-of-body sensations.

The student sometimes took as many as 100 pills at once, despite the standard dosage being one pill, to maximize hallucinogenic effects.

The student also shared information on smuggling techniques and so-called “OD,” or overdose methods, in a private group chat on a social networking service used mainly by teenagers and people in their 20s. The chat group also served as a platform for reselling leftover pills.

Customs officials said forensic analysis of the student’s phone led them to uncover two more suspects, a 22-year-old and a 17-year-old, who used similar methods to smuggle and consume narcotic medicines. All three met through the same online chat room.

The 22-year-old brought in 1,688 pills across 11 smuggling trips. Even after being caught once, they moved to a different private chat group to continue their activity.

The 17-year-old, a high school student, also smuggled large quantities of narcotic medicines and had reportedly been exposed to drug-related content on social media since middle school.

A gloved hand holds a small plastic bag of white powder as a handcuffed individual stands in the background. [JOONGANG ILBO]

Authorities said the three suspects experimented with various methods to heighten hallucinogenic effects, including crushing pills into powder for nasal inhalation or mixing them with over-the-counter medicines and food. They also held “hallucination parties,” meeting in person to overconsume pills with alcohol.

The case highlights a growing trend of drug activity moving to social media, which officials say has contributed to a sharp rise in offenders in their teens and 20s.

Data from the Drug Crime Special Investigation Headquarters shows that from January to October 2023, 1,174 were teenagers and 6,580 were in their 20s, making up 34.6 percent of the total 22,393 suspects arrested.

That figure of teenagers and those in their 20s was up 53.8 percent compared to 5,041 from the same period in 2022.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s Drug Crime Investigation Unit in August arrested 129 people on charges of buying or using narcotics, including 74 in their 20s and two teenagers.

In Daegu, among about 2,200 drug offenders arrested from 2022 to June this year, those in their 20s made up 722, nearly half the total, followed by 412 in their 30s and 85 in their teens.

“The rise of overseas purchases and social media has made drug-related information more accessible among younger people, lowering the age of first exposure,” an official from Busan Customs said. “What begins as curiosity-driven ‘hallucination play’ can lead to serious addiction and prosecution.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY LEE EUN-JI [[email protected]]