Drug smuggling cases by inbound air travelers nearly triple in 2025

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Published: 22 Dec. 2025, 17:58 Updated: 22 Dec. 2025, 18:44

Lee Myeong-ku, center, commissioner of the Korea Customs Service, conducts a passenger screening using advanced body-scanning equipment, including millimeter-wave technology, during an antidrug inspection campaign at Incheon International Airport’s Terminal 1 on Dec. 22. [KOREA CUSTOMS SERVICE]

The number of drug smuggling cases by air travelers nearly tripled in 2025 compared to a year earlier, customs authorities said Monday.

The Korea Customs Service said it has detected 557 cases of drug smuggling involving air travelers between January and November, compared to 198 cases in 2024.

Drugs seized during the cited period totaled 275.7 kilograms (608 pounds), more than double the amount seized over the same period last year, the agency said.

The number of such cases has shown a steady increase in recent years, rising from 112 in 2022 to 177 in 2023 and 198 in 2024.

In response, the customs agency said it has conducted comprehensive inspections on flights arriving from countries deemed at high risk for drug trafficking since the beginning of this year.

Yonhap