Police conducted a focused crackdown for about five months on illegal flyers advertising prostitution, illegal pharmaceuticals and debt collection, arresting more than 300 people.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said on the 11th that it had arrested a total of 338 people, including brokers, printers and business affiliates involved in producing and distributing illegal flyers, from July 21 to Dec. 31 last year.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's morals crime investigation team arrested 15 people in total, including seven who scattered flyers in a busy district of Gangnam-gu. In the process, about 450,000 illegal flyers were seized. The flyers contained provocative phrases such as "female college student touch room" and "If you can't touch, you're not a customer."
Police tracked down a person who distributed flyers for sexual function enhancement drugs at Cheongnyangni Station in September last year and arrested two people, including the ringleader, a seller and a printer. In November, a broker and a printer who arranged the production of provocative flyers on social media (SNS) were also caught.
After a sweeping crackdown in 2024, illegal flyers disappeared for a while but resurged, prompting police to launch another concentrated operation starting in July last year. The investigation found that many of the distributors caught this time had also been arrested during the 2024 crackdown.
Police plan to continue enforcement activities, considering that the statutory penalties for illegal flyer offenses are not high and tend to lead to repeat offenses. They are also seeking cooperation by sending letters to the printing association and related unions requesting the eradication of illegal flyer production.