"Tracking 60 Minutes" is chasing the real drug lord..Close coverage of insiders 24 hours a day

*This content was translated by AI.

"Tracking 60 Minutes" closely covered the drug informant "opposition" for the first time in the current affairs program.

KBS 1TV's "Tracking 60 Minutes," which will air at 10 p.m. on the 27th, will unveil the "Seller and Chaser, the Opposition and the Drug War," which contains the ever-evolving drug crimes and the way forward for the Korean drug investigation.

drug crimes that have gone deep into our society. There is a so-called 'opposition' source at the scene. These beings were known to the public through the film 'Opposition', which was released in 2025. The "opposition party" is an insider or addict of drug crimes, and instead of providing information on sales organizations and distribution networks to investigative agencies, they receive benefits such as commutation. Due to the nature of closed drug crimes, it is difficult to grasp the true nature of the drug sales organization without the cooperation of insiders. For this reason, 'opposition parties' have played an important role in domestic drug investigations.

■ Poisoner Baiting Drug Investigation, Opposition 24 Hours

Lee Tae-seung (pseudonym) is a drug addict who has been caught three times. Lee, who was arrested three months ago on charges of drug use, is currently under investigation without physical detention. Nevertheless, he was constantly buying drugs by accessing Telegram. Why doesn't Lee stop dealing drugs?

Lee Tae-seung (pseudonym) said he is conducting drug trafficking at the request of the police. His role is to purchase drugs from drug dealers and to receive "coordinates" referring to drug concealment sites and deliver them to the police. The police will help with the investigation process of collecting drugs and securing additional clues about sales plans. According to reporters' confirmation, methamphetamine was actually hidden in the place delivered by the drug dealer. Later, police were also caught collecting drugs.

■ a secret deal produced by the "Investigation Official Letter"

They say the reason drug addicts become informants is to obtain 'public letters'. If information on other people's drug crimes is provided and leads to the outcome of the investigation, the court recognizes that it has contributed to the investigation and issues documents. This so-called 'investigation public letter' is the basis for considerable commutation. This cooperative relationship has been solidified due to the combination of interests of investigative agencies that need crackdown records and drug offenders that need to be commuted.

Lee Hyun-jin (pseudonym), who was recently released from prison, is a drug addict who is undergoing drug treatment and rehabilitation. Lee, a simple administrator, also said he received a proposal for cooperation in the investigation from the detective in charge. It was about attracting an acquaintance to the medication site. Choi Jin-mook, director of the Incheon Dark (Drug Addiction and Rehabilitation Center), pointed out that the practice of investigating the drug by asking the addict to cooperate for the investigation causes side effects. In the process of securing clues to drug crimes, addicts who are at the forefront are more likely to be exposed to the temptation of drugs.

Choi Jin-mook, head of the Incheon Dark Center, said, "You're bringing addicts back to the scene of drugs to get help with the investigation? Addicts are discouraged from rehabilitation and lead to a risk of recurrence if they do something wrong."

Cho Kang-beom (pseudonym), a former drug distribution manager, also pointed out the limitations of drug investigations. Drug crime is a structure in which a small number of high-level supply measures produce a large number of addicts. Therefore, arresting top vendors is the core of the investigation. However, most of the recent drug deals have been operated in the form of branch organizations based on anonymous SNS platforms. Because there are few links between organizations, it is becoming difficult to track the top sellers. The investigative agency explains that it is focusing on arresting offline traders or subordinate sellers, which are relatively easy to crack down on.

■ developing drug crimes and newly demanded investigative techniques

Drug crimes are rarely reported or reported because the boundaries between the victim and the perpetrator are unclear. As a result, investigative agencies suffer from the crime recognition stage. In recent years, as the dark web and virtual currency began to be used in drug trafficking, the closeness of information has been strengthened. This is why some argue that online disguised investigations should be institutionalized in drug investigations.

In the case of digital sex crimes, online fake investigations by investigative agencies have been allowed for all age groups since June 2025. A legal basis has been established for investigators to hide their identities and infiltrate online platforms to secure evidence. This is an example of an investigative agency responding to the evolution of criminal methods. As such, there are growing calls for legalizing fake online investigations to ensure the effectiveness of the investigation as drug supply is made online.

In November, the government launched a joint drug crime investigation headquarters (hereinafter referred to as Joint Investigation Headquarters) involving a total of eight agencies, including the prosecution and police, to respond to drug crimes. The purpose is to speed up the response to drug crimes by integrating information and investigation functions that have been distributed by institutions. The joint venture focuses on tracking not only domestic distribution networks, but also high-ranking organizations such as overseas supply lines and general managers, so-called "body."

Experts stress the urgent need to shift away from performance-oriented crackdowns to a qualitative investigation system in order to effectively respond to drug crimes. It is necessary to establish a system to provide severe punishment to supply offenders, but to provide treatment to medication offenders and to support social rehabilitation.

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*This content was translated by AI.