The death of actor Lee Sun-kyun, famous for his role in the film Parasite, has sparked a wave of criticism in South Korea against the media and the police, accused of fueling a deleterious climate around the fight against drugs. The lifeless body of the actor, 48, was found in his car on Wednesday in Seoul, with a note “resembling a will”, according to the Yonhap news agency. He was the subject of an investigation opened in October by the authorities, for the alleged consumption of cannabis and other psychotropic drugs.
In a country that is very strict on this matter, this scandal has tarnished his image, depriving him of advertising contracts and appearances on television and in the cinema, for a shortfall estimated at ten billion won (7 million euros) by the South Korean press. Experts have since deplored the lack of presumption of innocence which has created an unhealthy atmosphere, through the sensationalist coverage of the affair fueled by the broadcast of elements of the investigation. The police are suspected of being behind the leak of confidential documents, such as audio extracts of private telephone conversations.
Also read: Actor Lee Sun-kyun, known for his role in Parasite, dies at 48
In addition to media pressure, Lee Sun-kyun had to submit to interrogations by the police: the last of them, a few days before his death, lasted nineteen hours. “There was no need to name the suspect in this investigation,” Vladimir Tikhonov, professor of Korean studies at the University of Oslo, told AFP.
“In South Korea, at a much higher level than in any European country which is more tolerant of the use of psychotropic drugs, being a suspect in a drug case is tantamount to a sanction in itself, with public ostracism” , he explained. It is a “social murder,” blasted Yu Hyun-jae, professor of communications at Sogang University in Seoul, who pointed to the shared responsibility of the media, the police and the public, in the “immense humiliation” that the actor had to endure.
Incheon police chief Kim Hui-jung defended his teams on Thursday, who conducted the investigation “in accordance with legal procedures” without leaking information to the press.
The announcement of the sudden death of the star actor aroused great emotion. A private ceremony at a Seoul hospital on Friday was attended by his wife, actress Jeon Hye-jin, and their two boys, as well as other names from Korean cinema. Parasite director Bong Joon-ho visited the funeral home on Thursday, where grieving fans left messages of remembrance.
“The works that you created with your efforts and your sincerity have saved so many people”, “We are sorry that we could not do anything for you when you were going through a difficult time”, could we read these words. Several entertainment-related events in South Korea have been canceled to respect the memory of the actor.
South Korea has adopted a “zero tolerance” policy, with current President Yoon Suk Yeol declaring a “war on drugs” when he came to power last year. The various drug and entertainment scandals point to the trendy Gangnam district, where luxury apartments face nightclubs and cosmetic surgery clinics.
Lee Sun-kyun was suspected of having taken illegal substances from a hostess at a sumptuous bar in this district of the capital Seoul. He denied having knowingly consumed these products, and claimed to have been “trapped” by this woman, against whom he had filed a complaint for blackmail and extortion of money, according to Yonhap. The actor had recently passed two drug tests, all negative, the South Korean news agency said.
Police announced Friday that they had referred to the prosecution a plastic surgeon practicing in Gangnam, currently detained for allegedly supplying illegal drugs to the bar hostess involved in the case. Ketamine, one of the drugs Mr. Lee allegedly used, was also implicated in the scandal at the “Burning Sun” nightclub in Gangnam, run by a K-Pop star, sentenced to prison for in particular having proposed women for sexual relations to potential investors.
This year, a man was sentenced to life in prison for organizing the kidnapping and murder of a woman, amid a crash in the cryptocurrency market and ketamine — the criminal’s successful murder weapon to obtain via his wife, a nurse in a plastic surgery clinic.
