Actor Yoo Ah In, whose real name is Uhm Hong Sik, faces his seventh trial on July 24 KST for charges related to habitual drug use. This trial was followed after the revelations about improper prescription practices involving his doctor. This trial is a significant moment in the ongoing legal proceedings against the 37-year-old actor.
Yoo Ah In faces his seventh court appearance for allegations of habitual drug use
The allegations surfaced when it was revealed that Yoo Ah In’s doctor had sent sleeping pill prescriptions via quick service under his family’s name without proper consultation. During the sixth trial, Dr. Hwang admitted to issuing prescriptions for Stilnox, a zolpidem-based sleep inducer. This was around August 2021, and the name was under the actor’s father.
Dr. Hwang defended his actions, explaining that quick service deliveries were temporarily allowed during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, he failed to verify if the actor’s father was genuinely ill, which raised concerns about the legitimacy of these prescriptions.
Despite Yoo Ah In and his father not being infected with COVID-19, the prescriptions were delivered at his request. When prosecutors questioned the necessity of quick service for non-life-threatening sleeping pill prescriptions, Dr. Hwang struggled to provide a satisfactory answer. Additionally, he explained the use of sleep anesthesia for the actor’s SGB (stellate ganglion block) procedure, citing the actor’s high sensitivity to pain and fear of neck injections.
Dr. Hwang acknowledged discussing Yoo Ah In’s habitual drug use with a colleague but denied illegally prescribing narcotics. The actor is accused of using medical narcotics 181 times between September 2020 and March 2022 under the pretext of cosmetic procedures. Significant amounts of propofol, midazolam, ketamine, and remimazolam were administered during this period. Additionally, he allegedly received illegal prescriptions for over 1,100 tablets of Stilnox and Xanax under another person’s name 44 times between May 2021 and August 2023. He is also accused, along with four accomplices, of smoking marijuana in the U.S. and encouraging others to do the same.
During the second trial, Yoo Ah In admitted to some charges of using marijuana and propofol but denied instructing others to smoke marijuana, destroying evidence, and other accusations.