Actor Yoo Ah-in, singer Nam Tae-hyun, and Don Spike are raising eyebrows among the public as they go back and forth between police stations and courts on drug use charges.
Yoo Ah-in attended the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Drug Investigation Unit in Mapo-gu, Seoul around 9 am on the 16th on charges of habitual drug use and underwent a secondary investigation. After undergoing an intense investigation for 21 hours, he was sent home at around 6:30 a.m. the next day, the 17th. Yoo Ah-in said, “I said what I could. I apologize for causing concern.” Yoo Ah-in was asked questions about cocaine use charges, the route of drug purchase, and the reason for changing the date of attendance, but did not answer.
Choi, a writer who graduated from art school and is known to be Yoo Ah-in's closest associate, also attended the investigation on this day. Mr. Choi was a reference at the beginning of the investigation, but his status was changed to a suspect after it was confirmed that he helped Yoo Ah-in administer drugs or administered the drugs himself. The police believe that Choi used drugs with Yoo Ah-in or prescribed zolpidem for Yoo Ah-in.
The police, who have completed the second investigation into Yoo Ah-in, are expected to decide whether to apply for an arrest warrant for Yoo Ah-in sometime this week. When the police apply for an arrest warrant, Yoo Ah-in's arrest will be decided based on the court's judgment through interrogation of the suspect before arrest.
Police believe that Yoo Ah-in took a total of five types of drugs. Last February, the police received an analysis result from the National Institute of Forensic Science that found four types of narcotic substances, including marijuana, propofol, cocaine, and ketamine, in Yoo Ah-in's hair and urine. Afterwards, Zolpidem, a psychotropic drug, was found in Yoo Ah-in's medical records. We have been investigating circumstances in which prescriptions were prescribed for purposes other than medical purposes.
Nam Tae-hyun, who is suspected of using Philopon, was interrogated as a suspect before being arrested at 10:30 a.m. on the 18th. Nam Tae-hyun, who has been suspected of taking Philopon since August of last year, received a 'positive' result for Philopon as a result of hair analysis. The police believed that there was a high possibility of Nam Tae-hyun destroying evidence and requested an arrest warrant. Seo Min-jae, an influencer from Channel A's 'Heart Signal 3', was also questioned on the same day on the same charges as Nam Tae-hyun.
Song Gyeong-ho, the chief judge in charge of warrants at the Seoul Western District Court, who completed the review, finished the interrogation of the suspects before arresting Nam Tae-hyun and Seo Min-jae this afternoon and said, "It is difficult to say that there is a constant residence and there is a risk of destruction of evidence and escape. At this stage, arrest is an excessive restriction on the right to defense. The arrest warrant was dismissed, saying, “It appears to be.”
In the second trial held on this day, the prosecution requested 5 years in prison, the same as the first trial, pointing out that Don Spike had taken 30 doses by the time of his arrest and that he was in possession of enough drugs to be administered more than 3,000 times. The prosecution added that the reason for the sentence was that there were circumstances suspicious of attempts to conceal assets, such as copyright transfer, and a history of similar crimes. The second trial sentencing date is the 15th of next month.
Additionally, in January, Ahn Ji-seok from the group House Rules was caught as a drug offender and sentenced to prison. It was an incident also known as the so-called ‘chaebol third-generation drug scandal’.
Celebrities who have social responsibilities as public figures are also helplessly collapsing due to the temptation of drugs that has already spread throughout society. In particular, the entertainment industry is getting sick recently with so many celebrities filling up the entertainment world that they have been exposed to drugs. There are growing voices calling for greater social awareness through severe punishment for drug charges.
Choi Ji-ye, Ten Asia Reporter wisdomart@tenasia.co.kr