Yoo Ah-In, a South Korean actor handed a one-year jail term, after being found guilty of illegal use of the anaesthetic drug Propofol. According to the Yonhap news agency.
Uhm Hong-sik, the real name of Yoo, was charged with using propofol on 181 occasions from 2020 and 2022. The medications were given at professional clinics, disguised as cosmetic procedures.
The prosecution had requested a four-year sentence for the actor but the Seoul Central District Court sentenced the 37-year-old to one year in prison, Yonhap news said.
“He is deemed guilty of all his purchases for habitual drug use,” the court stated in its ruling, according to Yonhap News TV.
According to the statement of the court on the offences he committed “in disregard of relevant regulations” and displayed a “lack of caution against drug substances.”
Last month, the doctor who administered propofol to Yoo was fined 40 million won (1.7million) because of giving the drugs to the actor without a proper prescription. Propofol is used primarily as a surgical anaesthetic and is sometimes abused recreationally, often involving medical professionals who might be willing to provide it without a valid clinical necessity.
This drug was also the cause of death of the Pop Star Micheal Jackson in 2009 due to an overdose.
After his 2003 debut, Yoo gained his fame appearing in various television dramas, and films across genres, and became one of the country’s most recognisable actors.
This trial is the latest drug scandal to hit South Korea.
Photo Courtesy: Yonhap News Agency