Two women arrested for allegedly drugging and robbing men they met at nightclubs

Two women have been arrested for drugging and robbing middle-aged men they met at nightclubs, police said Wednesday. Authorities from the Cheongju Cheongwon Police Precinct said they detained a woman in her 20s and another in her 40s.

The logo for Korean police [YONHAP]

Two women have been arrested for drugging and robbing middle-aged men they met at nightclubs, police said Wednesday.

Authorities from the Cheongju Cheongwon Police Precinct said they detained a woman in her 20s and another in her 40s on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act and committing aggravated robbery.

Police said the pair laced drinks with zolpidem, a prescription sleeping pill, and gave them to two men in their 50s at a motel in Cheonan, South Chungcheong, around 2 a.m. on June 15. After the men lost consciousness, the women used mobile banking apps to transfer 2 million won ($1,400) to their own accounts.

Investigators said the women used the same method five times in June alone, targeting 10 men they met at nightclubs in Cheonan and Cheongju, North Chungcheong, and stealing a total of 36 million won.

The suspects obtained zolpidem by claiming to suffer from insomnia and convincing doctors to prescribe the drug. They then coaxed intoxicated victims to reveal their phone passwords or used their fingerprints to unlock the devices.

Police began investigating after a victim reported unauthorized withdrawals and arrested the two women late last month. The victims told investigators they could not recall what happened during the incidents.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY KIM JI-HYE [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]