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South Korean actor and Parasite star, Lee Sun-kyun had been dropped from TV projects due to ‘hostess blackmail drug scandal’ before he was found dead in a suspected suicide.
The acclaimed South Korean actor who shot to worldwide fame following the release of the Oscar-winning film Parasite was found dead in his car in a suspected suicide at the age of 48 on Wednesday morning, December 27.
His wife, Jeon Hye-jin, an actress and former Miss Korea contestant, called the police after finding a suicide note. His body was found in a Seoul car park.
Lee was being investigated by police over allegations of taking marijuana and a powder which his accuser, a hostess at a high-end bar, said was ketamine. The drugs, she claimed, were taken at her home.
After news of an official investigation into his alleged drug use was published in late October, he was dropped from major projects, including a mystery thriller TV show, No Way Out, that began shooting that month.
The production company in charge of shooting the show sought to fire him after police said they may have needed a sample of his hair for drug testing, local media reported.
The production company said at the time that it had notified all crew and cast members working on the show, which is about a South Korean serial killer who is being hunted down by a police officer, that shooting would be postponed for two weeks to reorganise the cast.
His three appearances at police stations for questioning were highly publicised, and made headlines. His lawyer, after his final session on December 23 , asked that any further questioning be carried out in private, owing to the ‘burden’ of the spotlight.
Lee insisted he had not knowingly taken illegal drugs, and passed toxicology tests: he was demanding a lie detector test at the time of his death, to assess whether he or the hostess – known only as ‘A’ – was telling the truth.
He claimed she was trying to blackmail him, and had filed a criminal case.
‘I would like to sincerely apologize once again for causing so many people concerns,’ he said after his first questioning, on October 28 at the Nonhyeon Police Station in Incheon.
‘I will answer all questions truthfully.
‘A’ tricked me into doing drugs. I did not know that what she handed me were illegal drugs.’
South Korea has extremely strict laws against drug use.
Those who sell or buy marijuana face a minimum of one year in prison. Those who use it can be sentenced to up to five years in prison or fined up to $37,600.
Lee apologized to the public after his first police interview for his ‘involvement in such a dishonorable affair’ and pledged to cooperate with the investigation in an ‘honest’ manner.
Lee had been questioned three times – in October; on November 4; and on December 23, when he arrived at the police station at 10am and was interrogated for 19 hours.
He was accused of using ketamine, marijuana, and psychedelics on multiple occasions.
The actor had said he was tricked into taking drugs by a bar hostess who then tried to blackmail him.
Lee had filed a complaint against the woman, claiming she had blackmailed and extorted some 350 million won ($270,000) from him, The Korea Herald reported.
But Lee had admitted that he and the host met four times and he had inhaled a powder through the nose with a straw. He said he thought was a crushed sleeping pill.
The woman claimed to have seen Lee snorting ketamine.
The identity of the bar hostess in her 20s, who worked in the Gangnam district of Seoul, has not been made public.
Lee’s attorney had said last week that he should not be forced to endure further public humiliation by showing up at the police station for questioning, as the actor felt ‘burdened’ by having to show up in front of cameras for police summons.
The December 23 questioning was likely his last, police sources told local media.
The session lasted 19 hours, and he left the police station in the early hours of Christmas Eve.
‘I have also completed questioning as the plaintiff in the blackmail case,’ Lee said to reporters as he came out of the police building on Sunday morning.
‘The police will now decide whether my statements or the blackmailers are credible, and I hope that they use good judgment.’
When asked if the actor admitted to the allegations of drug use, Lee replied that he he had ‘answered all questions sincerely during the police investigation today.’
Lee was discovered three days later, inside of a car near Waryong Park in northern Jongno-gu, Seoul.
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