(Seoul) 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 police, accused of fomenting a harmful anti-drug climate.
Published yesterday at 7:19am.
Claire LEE Agence France-Presse
According to Yonhap News Agency, the 48-year-old actor's lifeless body was found in his car in Seoul on Wednesday, along with a note that “resembled a will.”
He was the subject of an investigation launched by authorities in October into alleged use of cannabis and other psychotropic drugs.
In a country that is very strict on the matter, this scandal has damaged his image and deprived him of endorsement deals and television and cinema appearances, estimated by the South Korean press at 10 billion won (US$10 million).
Since then, experts have deplored the lack of presumption of innocence, which has created an unhealthy atmosphere due to sensationalist reporting on the affair, fueled by the broadcast of elements of the investigation.
The police are suspected of being behind the distribution of confidential documents, such as audio clips of private telephone conversations.
In addition to media pressure, Lee Sun-kyun was subjected to police interrogations: the last of which, a few days before his death, lasted 19 hours.
“It was not necessary to name the suspect in this investigation,” Vladimir Tikhonov, a professor of Korean studies at the University of Oslo, told AFP.
“Social Murder”
“In South Korea, which is much more tolerant of the use of psychotropic drugs than any other European country, suspicion in a drug case is tantamount to punishment in itself, with public ostracism,” he explained.
It was a “social murder,” criticized Yu Hyun-jæ, professor of communication at Sogang University in Seoul, pointing out the shared responsibility of the media, the police and the public, who “immensely humiliated” the actor. have endured.
Incheon police chief Kim Hui-jung on Thursday defended his teams, who conducted the investigation “in accordance with legal procedures” without releasing information to the press.
The announcement of the star actor's sudden death caused great emotions.
A private ceremony at a Seoul hospital on Friday was attended by his wife, actress Jeon Hye-jin, and their two sons, 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 you have created with your dedication and sincerity have saved so many people.” “We are sorry that we could not have done anything for you in a difficult time,” we might read these words.
Several entertainment events in South Korea have been canceled to respect the actor's memory.
Zero tolerance
South Korea has adopted a “zero tolerance” policy, with current President Yoon Suk Yeol declaring a “war on drugs” when he took office last year.
The various drug and entertainment scandals point to the trendy Gangnam district, where luxury apartments face nightclubs and plastic surgery clinics.
Lee Sun-kyun was suspected of taking illegal substances from a hostess at a luxury bar in this district of the capital Seoul.
He denied knowingly consuming these products and claimed to have been “trapped” by this woman against whom he filed a complaint of extortion and extortion, according to Yonhap.
The actor recently passed two drug tests, all of which came back negative, the South Korean news agency said.
Police said on Friday that they had referred to prosecutors a plastic surgeon practicing in Gangnam who is currently in custody for allegedly supplying illegal drugs to the bar owner involved in the case.
Ketamine, one of the drugs Mr Lee is said to have used, was also implicated in the scandal at the Burning Sun nightclub in Gangnam, run by a K-pop star who was sentenced to prison for specifically targeting women for sexual purposes Relations had offered potential investors.
This year, a man was sentenced to life in prison for plotting to kidnap and murder a woman during a cryptocurrency market crash and sending ketamine – the criminal's successful murder weapon – to his wife, a nurse at a clinic for plastic surgery.