Police in Kyoto are warning young people not to respond to messages on social media that use slang and emoji — such as "broccoli" — to refer to marijuana and other illegal drugs.
The prefectural police are calling on people not to respond to such posts, which sometimes use hashtags in Japanese meaning "ice cream" or "vegetable," as it will reveal the person’s identity to drug dealers and criminal organizations.
According to the police, vegetables are often used to refer to marijuana, with the drug depicted using a broccoli emoji, while "chari," which means "bicycle" in Japanese, is code for cocaine, deriving from the substance's slang name "charlie" overseas.