Police Secure Evidence Proving Yoo Ah-in's Charges... Over 10,000 Documents Collected

Summons Likely Next Week, Attendance to Be Private
No Arrest Warrant Review, If Charges Denied...

On the 14th, it was reported that the police have secured numerous pieces of evidence proving actor Yoo Ah-in's (real name Eom Hong-sik) alleged drug use. The amount of evidence alone amounts to 10,000 pages, indicating that the police have spent a considerable amount of time collecting irrefutable proof against Yoo, who denies the allegations. Based on these materials, the police plan to summon Yoo for questioning soon.

According to the police, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Narcotics Crime Investigation Unit is finalizing the analysis of the materials obtained through raids and interviews with related parties. The police plan to prepare questions for Yoo based on the analyzed data. The summons is likely to be issued next week, and Yoo's appearance is expected to be conducted privately.

Actor Yoo Ah-in [Photo by Yonhap News]

The police are confident in proving Yoo's charges based on the materials secured so far. This is also why they are not currently considering applying for an arrest warrant. However, if Yoo continues to deny the charges despite decisive evidence proving drug use during the investigation, the police inside and outside the agency analyze that applying for an arrest warrant will become inevitable.

Last year, the police received a request for investigation from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) stating that Yoo had been prescribed propofol at several hospitals. At that time, the materials handed over along with the investigation request only included the number of propofol prescriptions and dosages.

On the 5th of last month, the police executed a search warrant on Yoo, who had returned from the United States, and began a full-scale investigation. While conducting forensic analysis on the seized mobile phone, they also collected urine and hair samples and requested analysis from the National Forensic Service (NFS). As a result, four types of narcotics, including marijuana, cocaine, and ketamine, in addition to propofol, were detected in Yoo's urine and hair samples.

On the 8th of last month, the police secured Yoo's medical records from plastic surgery clinics and other medical institutions in Gangnam-gu and Yongsan-gu, Seoul, where Yoo is suspected of having been prescribed propofol, and have been investigating hospital officials until recently. On the 7th of this month, they conducted searches at Yoo's residence in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, where he currently lives, and at his registered address in Itaewon-dong, securing related evidence.

A police official stated, "The volume of materials secured so far is vast, so the analysis has taken a long time. We are not sure if the analysis will be completed by the end of this week, but we are aiming to summon the suspect next week."