Ex-police chief’s son turns himself in amid widening drug probe

Drug offenders who bought marijuana liquid from a man surnamed Hong and the grandson of the founder of Namyang Dairy, turned themselves over to the prosecution asking for leniency, according to legal professionals and news reports Saturday.

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office has been investigating three offenders including a son of former commissioner of the Korea National Police Agency and an office worker identified as Kim on charges of violating drug law. They reported their crimes after their supplier, the Namyang Dairy founder’s grandson, was arrested and charged for illegal drug use and supply of drugs last month.

The grandson, 40, is suspected of distributing marijuana to his close friends and South Korean students studying abroad.

Among those linked to Hong's drug case also includes family members from large businesses and a TV celebrity, according to reports. The list of drug offenders linked to Hong also includes a 39-year-old surnamed Cho, whose gender was not identified, from Hyosung Group and a Korean-American bandmate of a trio group. A son-in-law of the former chairman of a financial holding company are also involved in the crime. As of now, a total of 12 people are on the list for prosecutorial investigations.

In 2015, the Namyang Dairy founder’s granddaughter Hwang Ha-na was accused of selling methamphetamine. In April 2018, she was indicted for taking psychotropic medications without a prescription. In 2019, she was sentenced to one year in prison and two years of probation by the appeals court.

(khnews@heraldcorp.com)