'Yoo Ah-in' sentenced to 1 year in jail in first trial...smoking teacher not guilty of drug possession, destruction of evidence

Actor Yoo Ah-in, who went on trial for habitual drug use, has been remanded in custody after being sentenced to jail in the first trial.

On Wednesday, the Seoul Central District Court sentenced Yoo Ah-in and his acquaintance Choi Mo, who were charged with violating the Narcotics Control Act (Hyangjeong), to one year in prison, a fine of 2 million won, and 80 hours in a drug rehabilitation education program.

"The defendant is not a good person and is highly culpable in light of the duration, number of times, method, and quantity of the crimes, such as administering propofol 181 times from 2020 to 2023 and habitually buying sleeping pills in the name of others from 2021 to 2022," the court said, adding, "Medical narcotics such as propofol are strictly managed by relevant laws and regulations due to dependence and addiction, and the defendant committed the crimes by taking advantage of the loopholes in the management methods prescribed by the laws and regulations."

The sentencing reasons included that "the defendant has a long history of sleep disorders, depression, etc. and that his motivation for becoming a habitual user of medical narcotics was primarily due to his inability to sleep. The defendant has admitted his dependency and appears to be working to overcome it."

The court, however, acquitted the accused of the cannabis smoking teacher charge and the destruction of evidence charge. In this regard, the court said, "there is room for the view that the accused smoked together because he asked them to join him, and that the parties used their own judgment to hang out and smoke together."

The prosecution, meanwhile, had sought four years' imprisonment prior to the first trial.