False Alarm: Candy Report at Hongdae Crowd of 120,000 Was Not Drug-Related

On Saturday evening, which coincided with Halloween, police received a report that a person in a mascot costume was distributing suspected drug-laced candy near Hongik University, where a crowd of about 120,000 had gathered. Police confirmed that no drug substances were detected in the candy, and the report was determined to be a false alarm.

On Saturday night, streets in Itaewon were packed with people in a wide variety of costumes. As crowds moved through streets closed to vehicle traffic, sidewalk congestion eased, and median barriers were installed in sections with heavy foot traffic to keep pedestrian flows from crossing. Police officers carrying light sticks guided citizens to keep moving without stopping. Congestion levels on Itaewon's main streets were displayed in real time on electronic signboards, and armored vehicles were also deployed in preparation for mass-casualty crimes.

Flowers of remembrance were placed in the alley where the tragedy occurred four years ago. Some citizens stopped in their tracks and were seen offering prayers.

As of 10:40 p.m. Saturday, the crowd in Itaewon stood at about 30,000. Around the same time, about 120,000 people—four times as many—had gathered near Hongik University. The streets around the university were so packed with revelers in Halloween costumes that there was barely room to move. Some citizens headed to Hongdae after first visiting Itaewon. Lee Seo-yoon, a resident of Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, explained, "Considering what happened there (the Itaewon tragedy), and Hongdae being closer."

Safety management measures put in place after the tragedy four years ago were applied at the sites where large crowds gathered this weekend.