‘Habitual drug administration’ Yoo Ah-in appeals for leniency in the second trial… It is not a malicious violation of the law

<img alt="Actor Yoo Ah-in, real name Eom Hong-sik, who was indicted on charges of habitual propofol use, is attending the first trial held at the Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 3rd. Photo Yonhap News” height=”426″ id=”imgs_2591664″ photo_no=”2591664″ src=”https://image.ajunews.com/content/image/2024/10/29/20241029144732846797.jpg” width=”640″/>
Actor Yoo Ah-in (real name Eom Hong-sik), who was indicted on charges of ‘habitual use of propofol’, is attending the first trial held at the Seoul Central District Court on the 3rd. [사진=연합뉴스]

Famous actor Yoo Ah-in (real name Eom Hong-sik), who was detained by the court after being sentenced to one year in prison in the first trial on charges of habitual drug use, appealed for leniency in the second trial, saying, “I did not violate the law maliciously.”

At the first appellate trial held on the 29th at the Criminal Division 5 of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judges Kwon Soon-hyung, Ahn Seung-hoon, and Shim Seung-woo), Yoo’s lawyer said, “Mr. Yoo did not maliciously violate the law or regulations by taking advantage of loopholes,” and “He has already been physically harmed.” “Due to the extreme situation, he developed dependence on sleeping anesthetics, and even before the investigation began, he visited a psychiatrist to improve this problem and was resolving his sleep disorder in a healthy way,” he said.

At the same time, he argued, “The lower court sentenced him to prison despite making efforts to overcome his sleep disorder and substantially freeing himself from dependence, is unfair.”

On this day, the prosecution stated the reason for the appeal, saying, “The court misunderstood the facts” in regard to the fact that some charges were acquitted in the first trial.

In relation to the dispute over the reasons for the appeal, the court asked, “Mr. Yoo is suspected of receiving marijuana and instructing people to smoke, so who do you believe gave the marijuana to Kim Woo-jun (hair stylist)?” and the prosecution responded, “We believe it was Mr. Yoo.”

On the other hand, Yoo’s lawyer refuted the prosecution’s claim, saying, “There is no fact that (marijuana) was handed over directly.”

In addition, the prosecution announced plans to add additional language to the indictment and resubmit it in relation to Yoo’s acquittal on the charge of trying to send his acquaintance, art artist Choi Ha-neul, to flee abroad. They also announced that they would request two police officers who investigated the case as witnesses.

Mr. Yoo, who appeared in court on this day, wore a black suit with his head shaved and kept his head down throughout the trial and did not say anything.

The court decided to hold another trial on the 19th of next month to hear additional opinions from both sides.

Previously, Mr. Yoo was indicted in October last year and handed over to trial on charges of habitually administering medical propofol 181 times between September 2020 and March 2022 at hospitals in Seoul under the pretext of sedative anesthesia during cosmetic procedures.

In addition, Mr. Yoo is accused of illegally purchasing over 1,100 tablets of two types of sleeping pills in the name of another person 44 times from May 2021 to August of last year, and in January of last year, he smoked marijuana three times in the United States with Mr. Choi and others, and smoked it to others. He is also accused of abetting.

Last September, the first trial found Mr. Yu guilty of all charges including smoking marijuana, habitual use of medical narcotics, and habitual purchase in the name of another person.

However, when the investigation into the alleged marijuana smoking teacher began, the accused of destroying evidence by asking acquaintances to delete the contents of their cell phones was found not guilty on the grounds that there was insufficient evidence.

Reporter information Kwon Gyu-hong spikekwon@ajunews.com