Prosecution investigator indicted for late actor Lee Sun-kyun case leak denies illegality of actions
Published: 19 Aug. 2025, 18:02
![A funeral for the late actor Lee Sun-kyun takes place at Seoul National University Hospital's funeral home in Jongno District, central Seoul, on Dec. 27, 2023. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/08/19/b0a41478-27a2-4088-ac5a-9ecdff9f544d.jpg)
A funeral for the late actor Lee Sun-kyun takes place at Seoul National University Hospital's funeral home in Jongno District, central Seoul, on Dec. 27, 2023. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]
A prosecution investigator indicted for leaking information about late actor Lee Sun-kyun’s drug case denied the charges in court on Tuesday.
At the first hearing at the Incheon District Court, the defense lawyer for the 44-year-old investigator from the Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office admitted the facts of the case but argued that they did not constitute a crime.
“The defendant is not a personal data handler, and the information in question does not qualify as a professional secret,” the lawyer said, claiming the leak was not unlawful.
Prosecutors indicted the investigator for allegedly passing details of Lee’s drug probe to a local newspaper reporter on two occasions in October 2023 — that Lee was under police investigation for drug use and the progress of the case.
The paper later published an exclusive report on Oct. 19, 2023, under the headline, “Top star L under drug investigation” (translation).
Separately, a former police inspector was also charged with leaking a police report that included Lee’s name, criminal record, identity and occupation to two reporters. Entertainment media outlets reported on the document on Dec. 28, 2023, the day after Lee’s death.
The incidents led to disciplinary action: The prosecutors’ office removed the prosecution office investigator from duty and initiated a disciplinary process, while the National Police Agency dismissed the police inspector.
Lee was booked on drug charges on Oct. 14, 2023. He appeared for police questioning three times over two months and was found deceased near Waryong Park in Jongno District, central Seoul, on Dec. 26, 2023, four days after his final interrogation.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JEONG JAE-HONG [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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