A record 6,482 people were investigated in criminal cases involving cannabis in Japan last year, up 1,140 from the previous year, with teens and young adults in their 20s accounting for over 70 percent of the figure, police said Thursday.
The number of people involved in cannabis-related cases exceeded those associated with stimulant drugs for the first time since data became available in 1958, according to the National Police Agency.
People in their teens or 20s accounted for 73.5 percent of the total. Among them, 3,545 people were in their 20s, making up 54.7 percent of the total, while 1,222 were below the age of 20, with the figure doubling from 609 in 2019, the data showed.
"The widespread use of smartphones has led to greater exposure to incorrect information about marijuana, potentially reducing the psychological barriers to its use," an agency official said.
Among notable cases involving cannabis since July last year, four members belonging to the boxing team of the Tokyo University of Agriculture and three members of the American football team at Nihon University were arrested.
In December 2023, Japan's parliament passed a bill to prohibit the use of marijuana amid growing concerns that the lack of a ban on using the substance is promoting drug abuse among young people, while possession and the cultivation of cannabis have already been banned.
The number of people involved in cases related to illegal "dangerous drugs" climbed to 424, up 145 from the previous year, due possibly to the increased distribution of gummy-like products containing compounds similar to those found in cannabis.
The number of people investigated in cases involving methamphetamine or amphetamines, known as "stimulant drugs" in Japan, fell by 210 to 5,914, but the figure concerning smuggling cases using airplanes increased by 71 to 200, likely boosted by Japan's easing of border restrictions following the coronavirus pandemic.
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