Yoo Ah-in sentenced to one year in prison for drug abuse

Yoo Ah-in. Image: Yonhap via The Korea Herald

Yoo Ah-in was sentenced to one year in prison by the Seoul Central District Court on Tuesday for repeated drug use.

The court ordered Yoo’s immediate detention after handing down the sentence, which included a one-year prison term, a 2 million won fine ($1,489) and a surcharge of 1.54 million won. Yoo was ordered to pay a surcharge for the value of items obtained illegally.

The 37-year-old actor was charged with abusing propofol, a drug used for inducing anesthesia, as well as midazolam, ketamine, and remimazolam on a total of 181 occasions between 2020 and 2022, under the guise of cosmetic procedures.

Charges against him also include purchasing about 1,100 sleeping pills with prescriptions under other people’s names from 2021 to 2022, and smoking marijuana while in the United States with four colleagues.

During the final hearing held at the Seoul Central District Court in July, prosecutors demanded a four-year prison term for Yoo on charges of habitually abusing illegal drugs.

“Regardless of the outcome, I will repay those who have supported me by becoming healthier and more honest and by living a life that contributes positively to society,” Yoo was reported as saying during his final statement to the court in July.

Since his 2003 onscreen debut in an advertisement, Yoo has appeared in numerous hit Korean series and films such as “Secret Love Affair” (2014), “Veteran” (2015), and “The Throne” (2015). He clinched the best actor award at the 36th and the 41st Blue Dragon Film Awards for his performance in “The Throne” and “Voice of Silence” (2020), respectively, and gained further popularity for his depiction of pseudo-religious leader Jin-soo in Netflix’s hit fantasy series “Hellbound” (2021).