Jung Il-hoon, former member of K-pop boy band BTOB, was sentenced by a local court Thursday to two years in prison for habitually smoking marijuana.[1][2] The Seoul Central District Court ordered Jung to be taken into custody immediately after sentencing.[1][2] The judge deemed it necessary to arrest him in court because he was considered a flight risk.[3] Seven accomplices indicted for drug offences together with Jung were also sentenced to prison terms ranging from 18 months to two years.[1][2] Jung admitted the charges and appealed for mercy after prosecutors demanded a four-year prison sentence and forfeiture of 133 million won.[1][2]
He was indicted without detention in April on charges of smoking marijuana worth 133 million won bought from an acquaintance on 161 occasions between July 2016 and January 2019.[1] He and seven other defendants were on trial for buying 826g of marijuana valued at 133 million won and smoking it 161 times between 5 July 2016 and 9 January 2019.[3] The court ordered Jung to forfeit 133 million won for violating the Narcotics Control Act.[1] The sentence was separately reported as two years in prison and a fine of 133 million won for purchasing and using marijuana on 161 occasions.[3]
The court said the defendants used sophisticated tactics including communications through the dark web and cryptocurrency-based payments to cover up the offences.[1][2] Jung and an accomplice surnamed Park played leading roles and committed the largest number of offences.[1][2] He had left the seven-member boy band in December after the allegations came to light.[3]
The court said Jung and his accomplice deserve due punishment for their habitual use of marijuana.[2] The agency’s account gives Jung’s age as 27 at the time of sentencing.[2]
