Smuggling of club drugs targeting young people has surged more than sevenfold over the past five years.
The Korea Customs Service said on the 18th that an analysis of enforcement data on club drugs compiled through Sep. 2025 showed that the seized volume jumped 7.3 times from 15.8 kilograms in 2021 to 115.9 kilograms in January–September this year. That is enough for about 2.32 million people to take at the same time. The increase is steep, with the nine-month total this year already surpassing last year's full-year seizures (79.9 kilograms).
Club drugs are narcotics such as ecstasy (MDMA), ketamine, and LSD, which are mainly consumed in clubs and at parties and induce hallucinations and mood elevation. There have also been reports of abuse in sex crimes. While the number of cases fell from 215 to 116 over the same period, the weight grew significantly as shipments became larger.
The Korea Customs Service said, "Among club drugs, the most pronounced increase in smuggling is ketamine," noting that "the trend toward large-scale smuggling is clear."
Seizures of ketamine rose 17.3 times from 5.9 kilograms in 2021 to 101.9 kilograms this year, and the number of "large-scale smuggling" cases of 1 kilogram or more jumped 15 times from 1 to 15.
By route of entry based on seized volume: ▲ express cargo (51.4 kilograms) ▲ travelers' baggage (41.8 kilograms) ▲ international mail (8.0 kilograms), with more than 90% coming in via express shipments and baggage. The main sending countries were mostly in Europe, including France (57.1 kilograms), the United Kingdom (11.8 kilograms), and Germany (10.8 kilograms). The Korea Customs Service said, "It appears that Europe-based international drug organizations are viewing Korea as an emerging market and attempting to smuggle drugs in."
The Korea Customs Service plans to focus on cutting off supply chains. It will upgrade its artificial intelligence (AI)-based risk selection system to strengthen inspections of high-risk travelers, express cargo, and international mail, and will introduce additional advanced detection equipment such as millimeter-wave scanners, Raman spectrometers, and ion scanners. It will also strengthen cooperation with major sending countries in Europe and Southeast Asia and expand drug misuse prevention education and online campaigns targeting teenagers.
Lee Myeong-gu, commissioner of the Korea Customs Service, said, "The smuggling of club drugs is a serious crime targeting young people, our future generation," adding, "We will block smuggling at the border from the customs clearance stage through focused inspections and international cooperation."