[20 people caught smoking marijuana, including third-generation conglomerates and singers]



Prosecutors caught 20 people, including the children of conglomerates and singers, who habitually smoked marijuana and even sold it to people around them.



Among them, 17 people, excluding three who fled abroad, were handed over to trial, including the third generation of conglomerates such as Namyang Dairy Products, Korea Steel, and Hyosung Group.



[ Junho Shin |

Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office, Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office: Most of them are international students in their 30s and 40s, and are identified as so-called 3rd generation chaebol families, foreign nationals, wealthy people, and celebrities.

]



Mr. Hong, the son of the second son of Namyang Dairy Products founder and honorary chairman Hong Doo-young, was accused of smoking and distributing hemp to people around him in October of last year.



Hong Jong-yeol, the grandson of Korea Steel founder Hong Jong-yeol, was also arrested and indicted on charges of buying, selling or smoking hemp on several occasions.



Hyosung Group founder Cho Hong-je's grandson, Mr. Cho, was also indicted without detention on four counts of purchasing and smoking hemp last year.



Ahn Mo, a 40-year-old American singer who is a member of a trio of singers, was charged not only with buying and smoking hemp, but also for cultivating it himself.



In this case, after the police arrested and sent a 39-year-old surrogate surnamed Kim on charges of cultivating hemp in September of last year, the prosecution conducted a supplementary investigation, revealing the overall distribution process.



Prosecutors explained that some suspects were in a serious state of addiction and dependence, such as growing hemp in a family living with young children or smoking hemp while on a 'prenatal trip' with a pregnant wife.



Prosecutors said, "We will continue to thoroughly investigate hemp distribution offenders and focus on blocking the inflow and distribution of hemp in Korea."



This is SBS Park Chan-geun.



(Report: Park Chan-geun / Video coverage: Seol Min-hwan / Video editing: Park Ki-deok / Production: D News Platform Department)