Parasite actor, chaebol scion under police scrutiny for suspected drug abuse in South Korea

Korea Herald/ANN, Seoul: According to reports on Sunday citing police, Lee Sun-kyun, who won an Oscar for his performance in the film Parasite, will be called in for questioning at the earliest possible point this week. This is part of an ongoing investigation into possible drug abuse involving the actor and others, including chaebol offspring.

The 48-year-old actor's hair may be tested for drugs with a warrant being considered by authorities, according to the reports, should he fail to comply. Although they haven't opened an investigation yet, police have been considering the possibility of legal repercussions in light of claims that he used illegal drugs this year.

According to sources, Lee has reportedly used unidentified illegal substances multiple times this year in escort bars and residential locations in the Gangnam neighborhood of southern Seoul.

Lee is one of the eight individuals being investigated. Hwang Ha-na, the founder of Namyang Dairy Products' granddaughter, and Han Seo-hee, a K-pop trainee who gained notoriety in 2017 for consuming marijuana at his residence with former BigBang bandmate T.O.P.

Additionally, it is suspected that the two used illegal drugs at adult entertainment venues connected to the actor. Others' identities are still a mystery.

Notwithstanding South Korea's efforts to restore its once-proud status as a "drug-free" nation, concerns about a possible national drug epidemic are being heightened by Lee's case.

Sleep, Lee's most recent K-horror film, is currently showing in Singapore at Golden Village and independent theater chain The Projector.

In addition to Lee's drug case, Yoo Ah-in, an actor most recently seen on the Netflix series Hellbound, was charged on Thursday with regular use of illegal drugs without being placed under arrest. This came almost a month after the court twice overturned Yoo Ah-in's arrest warrant.

Born Uhm Hong-sick, the 37-year-old actor is suspected of violating the Narcotics Control Act of the nation by giving out medical drugs and propofol, a drug used to help patients sleep or relax before and during surgery or other medical procedures, on 181 separate occasions at clinics located throughout Seoul between 2020 and 2021.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's drug crime investigation unit said on Friday that it had arrested 37 drug ring members, including a smuggler, eight distributors, and 28 buyers, on charges of breaking the Narcotics Control Act and the country's criminal code. This news comes despite the ongoing fallout over accusations of drug use made against A-list actors.

A red notice has been requested by the police for the alleged mastermind, who is thought to be staying abroad.

During the course of the investigation, police also found 9 kg of methamphetamine, which is equivalent to up to 300,000 doses.

From May 2018 to the end of the previous year, 44 doctors prescribed and administered opioids more than 50 times annually, according to data from the Health Ministry that the Board of Audit and Inspection reviewed on Thursday. This raises concerns about the ministry's lack of handling to ensure safe drug prescriptions and loopholes in which people can obtain drugs through self-medication.

Furthermore, according to Customs data obtained by lawmaker Hwang Hee of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, the authorities have noticed a sharp increase in illicit foreign exchange transactions over the past five years, with some money laundering techniques being used for the purchase and smuggling of illicit drugs.

According to the National Police Agency, the number of drug offenders arrested in the first eight months of 2023 was over 12,700, with a notable surge in younger age groups. This figure significantly exceeded the 12,387 arrests made in the same period last year, which was the most in ten years.