Over the past three years and seven months, more than 4,000 individuals were apprehended for child pornography offenses, including production and distribution, yet only 261 of them were referred to prosecutors while in detention, according to the official data.

Data released Wednesday by Rep. Hwang Jung-a of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, based on information from the National Police Agency, highlighted the extent of child exploitation offenses and the relatively low rate of detention.

Between 2021 and July of this year, police identified a total of 4,763 suspects under Article 11 of the Juvenile Protection Act, which prohibits the production and distribution of exploitative content involving children and minors.

The yearly breakdown shows 1,747 individuals in 2021, 1,052 in 2022 and 2023, and 912 from January to July of this year.

However, only 261 of the 4057 suspects that the police caught were forwarded to prosecution under arrest conditions during this period: 59 in 2021, 62 in 2022, 68 last year, and 72 between January and July of this year.

This is even though investigations concluded a lack of guilt for only 583 suspects, or 14.3 percent of the total.

The remaining 3,212 were referred to the prosecution without detention.

Hwang criticized law enforcement agencies for overlooking the severity of child pornography offenses.

“There is a concerning trend of authorities underestimating the gravity of child exploitation offenses," Hwang said in a statement. "With growing calls to intensify penalties for exploitative materials involving minors, including deepfake content, it is crucial to develop robust and effective measures against these crimes.”

Under Article 11 of the Juvenile Protection Act, "child and juvenile exploitation materials" are broadly defined to include any content -- such as films, videos and digital images -- depicting children, juveniles or individuals easily identifiable as such in sexual contexts.

This includes acts of intercourse, simulated sexual acts using body parts or objects and the exposure of body parts that may cause public shame. Those involved in the production, import or export of these materials face severe penalties, including life imprisonment or a minimum prison sentence of five years.