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| Photo taken on Sept. 30, 2020, shows cannabis plants confiscated by police in Aichi Prefecture. (Photo by=Kyodo) |
[Asia News Communication = Reporter Reakkana] Japanese police data showed on Thursday, A record 5,034 people were involved in cannabis-related crimes in Japan in 2020, with teens and those in their 20s accounting for the majority of the offenders, Kyodo reported.
The figure rose 713 from the previous year for the seventh consecutive yearly increase and exceeded 5,000 for the first time. The National Police Agency warned that many young people are not aware of the risk of drugs due to the circulation of "positive information online" and vowed to boost cyber patrols and a crackdown on drug deals using social media. The survey shows that involving 748 of the total offenders, just 16.7 percent said they’re aware of the dangers of using cannabis.
Of the 5,034 people, 887 were aged between 14 and 19, up 278 from the previous year, and 2,540 were in their 20s, up 590. The number of those aged 14 to 19 involved in cannabis cases probed by the police jumped 4.3-fold to 12.9 per 100,000 people in that age group from 2016, while the figure for those in their 20s grew 2.5 times to 20.1, NPA data showed. Overall, 5.0 individuals per 100,000 were involved in cannabis offenses last year, doubling from 2016. The number of people involved in drug offenses in general in 2020 rose 715 from the previous year to 14,079 people.
