A total of 402 crimes committed by foreign nationals, including the sale of illicit drugs and gambling, were uncovered during a special 100-day operation, police said.

The cases involving 886 suspects were uncovered during a special inspection period from July 16 to Oct 23. Eighty-nine suspects are in custody, according to police.

The largest number of cases, 115, involved physical violence, followed by 89 cases linked to illegal gambling. Also, 81 cases involving illegal drugs and 53 cases related to fraud were discovered.

Police said most of the violent crimes occurred impulsively on streets. They frequently involved a group of foreigners of same nationality or foreigners working at the same workplace attacking other foreigners living in Korea. Other cases involved damaging public property while drunk.

In June, a total of 11 foreigners, including Cambodians and Thais, were caught after damaging property and committing violence using weapons in front of a night club in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province.

Police also have been strengthening its crackdown on sex trafficking of foreign women as well as illegal loan sharks operating at casinos.

In July, nine non-Korean loan sharks, whose nationalities have not been revealed, were caught by the authorities after they allegedly offered gambling loans to Chinese nationals. When the Chinese individuals did not pay back on time, the loan sharks allegedly locked them up and beat them. Among the nine suspects, one has been placed under custody.

In September, 15 individuals, including a Russian, were caught after purchasing a burned BMW 520d, one of the 20 BMW vehicles that have caught fire since September, for 500,000 won ($427). The suspects is alleged to have illicitly used the vehicle’s registration number to register another car for sale to Russia.

Last month, a total of 23 foreign-nationals were nabbed after smuggling in methamphetamine from China.

Police said the number of crimes foreign nationals had been booked for from January to October this year dropped by 5.3 percent, compared to the same time period last year.

(dyc@heraldcorp.com)