The number of apprehended drug offenders surged to a record high of 18,395 last year, driven by crimes among young people and foreigners, a prosecution report showed.

According to the 2022 white paper on drug crimes published by the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, the figure marks an upsurge of 45.8 percent from 2018, when the corresponding number reached 12,613.

The number of apprehended drug offenders stood at 16,044 in 2019, 18,050 in 2020 and 16,153 in 2021, the report also showed.

The office attributed the sharp increase to soaring drug crimes among younger generations made possible by the dark web and social media platforms where drugs can be sold and bought online.

Of the drug offenders detected last year, 10,988, or 59.8 percent of the total, were those in their 30s or younger. The corresponding number in 2018 was 5,257. (Yonhap)