Drug-Driving Alarms Sound After Porsche Plunges Into Han River

A surge in drug-impaired driving incidents is threatening urban traffic safety in South Korea, with experts warning that such cases are emerging as a new blind spot in road safety enforcement.

A woman in her 30s, identified only as Ms. A, appeared in court on Monday for a pretrial detention hearing after allegedly causing an accident while driving under the influence of drugs near Banpo Bridge in Seoul. The Seoul Western District Court conducted the hearing from 10:30 a.m. the previous day on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act and drug-impaired driving under the Road Traffic Act.

The incident occurred at approximately 8:44 p.m. on January 25, when Ms. A was driving a Porsche SUV on the northern section of Banpo Bridge. Her vehicle struck a guardrail and plunged onto the Han River embankment near Jamsu Bridge. The crash also involved a collision with a Mercedes-Benz driven by a man in his 40s traveling in the first lane of Gangbyeon Expressway toward Guri. Both drivers sustained minor injuries and were transported to hospitals.

Police searching Ms. A's vehicle immediately after the accident discovered multiple empty propofol bottles, disposable syringes containing drugs, and medical tubing. The Yongsan Police Station arrested Ms. A on January 26 on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act and drug-impaired driving. Investigators believe she was likely under the influence of drugs at the time of the accident and are examining how she obtained and administered the substances.

Statistics underscore the growing threat. According to the National Police Agency, license revocations for drug-impaired driving reached 237 cases last year, up approximately 45% from the previous year. Traffic accidents caused by drug-impaired driving surged from 24 cases in 2023 to 70 in 2024, then climbed to 75 last year.

"There are concerns that drug-impaired driving is establishing itself as another high-risk driving category following drunk driving," a police official said.

Drug-impaired driving is particularly dangerous because it is difficult to detect through conventional roadside checks and causes immediate impairment of judgment and reaction time, significantly increasing the risk of serious accidents.