Published : Jan. 24, 2011 - 18:25
An actor who confessed to smuggling in and using drugs was sentenced to two and a half years in jail by a Seoul court Monday. The prosecution had demanded four years.
Kim Seong-min, 38, was arrested and indicted by prosecutors last month on charges of bringing in methamphetamines and marijuana from the Philippines on several occasions from April 2008 to August 2010 and consuming them at his residence in Seoul last year.
Kim Seong-min
“The court set the sentence considering the fact that the defendant confessed to all the charges against him and shows deep remorse,” the Seoul Central District Court said in its ruling, adding Kim had been suffering from depression and insomnia following stock investment losses.
The court said colleagues from the entertainment industry and fans had sent appeals in his defense.
Kim was also ordered to restitute 904,500 won ($803).
The actor’s arrest came as a surprise, given his relatively good reputation at work and in his personal life.
Kim was immediately dropped from several television programs where he was a regular and had submitted three letters of apology after his arrest. (Yonhap News)