On Tuesday, Yoo Ah-in, a South Korean actor, was found guilty of illegally using the anaesthetic drug propofol and sentenced to 1 .year in prison, as per Yonhap news agency.
The Yonhap News TV reported, “He is deemed guilty of all his purchases for habitual drug use in disregard of relevant regulations and lack of caution against drug substances.” A doctor who gave Yoo propofol without a legitimate prescription was penalised 40 million won i.e., $30,000 last month.
Actor Lee Sun-kyun, best known for his part in the Oscar-winning film Parasite, committed himself in December after being accused of illegal substance use, provoking public indignation over what many saw as an overzealous police inquiry lacking real proof. Lee Jae-yong, then-Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics, was convicted of illegally using propofol in 2021 and fined 70 million won. He was found guilty of frequently receiving anaesthesia at a plastic surgery facility in Seoul over a period of several years.
Propofol, while predominantly used as a surgical anaesthetic, is occasionally abused recreationally, typically with the assistance of medical practitioners who are ready to prescribe it without a legitimate therapeutic need. In 2009, music singer Michael Jackson died after an overdose of the substance, according to reports.
“I apologise for causing concern to many people,” Yoo was reported as saying in court by Yonhap. Yoo rose to prominence in the South after making his debut in 2003, appearing in a variety of television dramas and films across genres and becoming one of the country’s most known actors. This trial marks the latest drug scandal in South Korea.