Is Jeju, Ranked No. 1 in Crime Rate, Actually Dangerous? A Full Data Analysis

[Anchor]

In the wake of a series of missing persons and death cases, people are saying that it is scary to visit Jeju Island. Concerns are growing even further as statistics show that Jeju has the highest crime rate in the country. Is Jeju really the most dangerous place? We conducted a full data analysis on Fact Check The Truth.

Reporter Lee Gyeong-won has the details.

[Reporter]

[YouTube video: It seems to have gone beyond truly serious. I'm too scared to go to Jeju Island anymore.]

Amidst talks about how Jeju Island is frightening due to crime, a video from six months ago featuring a singer who said they faced a threat of murder while traveling in Jeju in the past has also drawn renewed attention.

[Sung Hyun-woo / Singer (Video from last February): An older man came running straight at me, for real. He came running with a knife.]

We conducted a comprehensive analysis of crime figures based on the most recent police statistics from 2024.

The total number stands at approximately 1.58 million.

Jeju Island recorded about 4,000 crimes per 100,000 residents, showing a wide gap even with Busan, which ranked second.

It is indeed an overwhelming number one.

We took a closer look based on more than 220 lower-level local governments (si, gun, and gu).

Even within major metropolises like Seoul, Busan, Daegu, and Incheon, downtown areas specifically rank at the very top.

Jeju ranks 11th. While it is still high, downtown areas and tourist destinations share a common trait.

There are many floating populations, but relatively few permanent residents.

Regional crime rates are calculated by the number of crimes committed relative to the resident population. With a large floating population?

That means many people gather, so crimes likely occur accordingly.

On the other hand, if the resident population is relatively small, the denominator becomes smaller.

Naturally, the crime rate goes up.

Jeju Island has a resident population of 670,000 and 13 million annual visitors.

If you look at the types of crime in Jeju as well.

Violent crimes such as murder, robbery, and rape ranked 27th nationwide, which was not as high as concerns suggested.

Rather, fraud crimes were unusually frequent, ranking 6th, and violent minor offenses such as property damage, intimidation, and assault were also driving up Jeju's crime rate.

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At the same time, the issue of crimes committed by Chinese nationals in Jeju is also being discussed.

Among foreign suspects in Jeju the year before last, Chinese nationals accounted for an overwhelming 68%. However, when calculated based on total domestic and foreign suspects in Jeju, Chinese nationals accounted for 1.5%.

The national average is 1.3%.

(Producers: Kim Do-kyun, Han Seung-ho | XR: Jeon Yu-geun, Kim Min-young | Cinematography: Seol Min-hwan | Video Editing: Kim Jong-tae)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.