The government will form an interagency investigation unit to fight increasing drug crimes amid the recent discovery of a disturbing drug-related extortion scam targeting students.

In a meeting on Monday, relevant departments including the prosecution, the police and customs as well as the education and drug safety ministries and the Seoul city government decided to establish the special team.

The envisioned special drug crime investigation headquarters will include 840 officials to focus on drug crimes targeting adolescents, internet users and drug smuggling.

According to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, the number of drug offenders posted a record high in January and February of this year at two-thousand-600, increasing over 32 percent on-year, with the proportion of those in their teens and twenties more than doubling in the last five years.

The decision follows a recent extortion scheme involving the distribution of drug-laced beverages to high school students near cram schools in Seoul as part of a plan to blackmail their parents.