Hwang Hana Indicted and Detained on Drug Charges... Accused of Administering Methamphetamine to Two Acquaintances

Hwang Hana Suspected of Attempting to Persuade Accomplice While Fleeing Abroad

Hwang Hana, 37, the granddaughter of the founder of Namyang Dairy Products, has been indicted on charges of administering drugs to acquaintances.

The Criminal Division 2 of the Anyang Branch of the Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office, led by Chief Prosecutor Jeong Wonseok, announced on January 20 that Hwang had been indicted and detained on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act (psychotropic substances). Hwang is accused of administering methamphetamine to two acquaintances at an apartment in Gangnam District, Seoul, in July 2023.

Hwang Hana, the great-granddaughter of the founder of Namyang Dairy Products, who fled overseas while under investigation for drug charges and was arrested, is attending a pre-trial detention hearing at the Suwon District Court Anyang Branch in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province on December 26, 2025. Joint coverage by Yonhap News Agency. Photo by Yonhap News Agency.

Hwang has reportedly denied the charges to investigators, stating, "I was present at the scene, but I did not use drugs."

After one of her accomplices was subject to a police search and seizure, Hwang left for Thailand the very next day. In response, beginning in May last year, police invalidated Hwang’s passport and requested an Interpol Blue Notice (to determine her whereabouts). Despite being aware of these actions, prosecutors believe Hwang illegally entered Cambodia from Thailand without returning to Korea. Later, through her attorney, Hwang expressed her intention to voluntarily appear before the police, and on December 24 last year, she returned to Korea, was taken into custody at Gwacheon Police Station, and was questioned.

Following her arrest, Hwang submitted revised statements and audio recordings from her accomplice and a witness through her attorney. However, based on investigations of those involved, prosecutors reportedly found that while evading authorities overseas, Hwang attempted to contact her accomplice through acquaintances and tried to persuade them to provide testimony favorable to her.

Previously, Hwang was sentenced to one year in prison with a two-year suspended sentence for administering methamphetamine on three occasions between May and September 2015. The following year, during her probation period, she was sentenced to one year and eight months in prison for repeated drug use.