Embattled K-actor Yoo Ah-in accused by man of sexual assault

SEOUL – A 30-year-old man has filed a criminal complaint against South Korean actor Yoo Ah-in for sexual assault, Seoul police said on July 26.

Investigators are considering the possibility that Yoo had been under the influence of drugs when the alleged incident occurred.

Officials at the Seoul Yongsan Police Station are investigating the imitative rape case involving the 37-year-old star, known for films such as Burning (2018) and television series such as Hellbound (2021), with plans to summon him for questioning soon. Imitative rape, according to South Korea’s Criminal Act, refers to rape via non-genital body parts.

Yoo’s lawyer released a statement on July 26 to deny the allegations and urge the public to refrain from “unnecessary speculations” related to his client.

The accuser said he was sexually assaulted by Yoo while sleeping at a unit of a commercial-residential building in Yongsan, Seoul, on July 14. The unit is not the home of Yoo, nor the accuser. There were others at the scene.

The accuser has been questioned and subjected to a rapid drug test. The results came back negative.

The new allegation is another blow to the embattled Yoo, who is on trial for repeated illegal drug use. He is accused of illegally using medical anaesthetic propofol on 181 occasions between 2020 and 2022, smoking and instigating others to smoke marijuana, and instigating others to destroy criminal evidence.

Propofol is categorised as a psychotropic substance under South Korea’s Narcotics Control Act and requires a doctor’s prescription.

Earlier this week in court, the prosecution requested a four-year prison term for Yoo.

Before his fall from grace, Yoo had been touted as one of the best actors of his generation. He received international attention for Burning and, in 2021, won the Blue Dragon Film Award and the Baeksang Arts Award for Best Leading Actor for his role in crime drama Voice Of Silence. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK