Yoo Ah-in appeals for leniency in the second trial..."It's not a malicious violation."

ⓒYTN

Actor Yoo Ah-in (38, real name Eom Hong-sik), who was arrested in court in the first trial on charges of taking drugs, appealed for leniency in the second trial, saying he did not violate the law maliciously.

"Yoo did not violate the law maliciously by using loopholes in laws and regulations, but he became dependent on sleep anesthetics when he was already physically and mentally struggling," Yoo's lawyer said at the first hearing of the Seoul High Court on the 29th. "The original trial's sentence is too heavy and unfair."

"Yoo had been visiting the psychiatry department before the investigation of the case began and was trying to solve the sleep disorder in a healthy way," he added. "It was also a situation where he enjoyed a significant treatment effect away from his dependence on sleep anesthetics."

On this day, Yoo came to court in a suit and did not make any remarks.

The court is expected to hold another hearing on the 19th of next month to hear additional opinions from both sides.

Yoo was put on trial from September 2020 to March 2022 on charges of habitually administering medical propofol on 180 occasions under the guise of sleep anesthesia for cosmetic purposes. He is also accused of illegally buying 1,100 sleeping pills of two types under the name of others 44 times between May 2021 and August last year, and of smoking hemp three times in the United States with Choi and others in January this year and teaching others to smoke.

The first trial found marijuana smoking, habitual drug use, and habitual purchase of other people guilty. However, the allegation of a hemp smoking teacher and the charge of destroying evidence that asked acquaintances to erase the contents of their mobile phones when the investigation began were considered innocent, saying there was a lack of evidence.

Reporter Lee Yu Na from Digital News Team.