Doctor Accused of 4,700 Illegal Propofol Injections Denies 'Use of Foreign Identities' in Court

Hospital Staff: "Specific Allegations Required to Clarify How Conspiracy Was Organized"

A pediatrician specializing in adolescent medicine, who was indicted and detained on charges of illegally administering propofol to people addicted to the drug approximately 4,700 times over five years, admitted to most of the charges during the first trial. However, the defendant flatly denied allegations related to administering the drug under stolen identities of foreign nationals.

Propofol found at Mr. A’s hospital. Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office

On August 27, Presiding Judge Cho Youngmin of the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 2 held the first trial for Mr. A, six hospital staff members, and five patients accused of violating the Narcotics Control Act (psychotropic drugs) and related offenses. During the trial, the court confirmed whether each defendant acknowledged the charges and discussed the evidence. Mr. A's attorney argued, "The charges have been largely misrepresented," saying, "Most of them are admitted, but we completely deny the part involving the use of foreign nationals' identities for administration of the drug."

Four hospital staff members denied the charges, claiming that specific evidence of their involvement was not identified, while the remaining two staff members acknowledged the charges. The drug recipients largely admitted to the allegations against them.

There was also criticism that the charges against the hospital staff members were vague. The attorney for some of the staff stated, "The indictment only lists them as accomplices; there has been no investigation clarifying how they participated, how profits were split, or how the conspiracy was organized. Some staff members only participated once, and a thorough review of the records gives no indication of precisely what role each defendant played," adding, "Aiding and abetting could be established, but more specific allegations are required for the indictment."

From November 2020 over a span of five years, Mr. A is alleged to have illegally administered a total of 180,000 milliliters of propofol to 32 addicts in approximately 4,700 incidents at a clinic in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. It has been reported that Mr. A attracted clients, such as entertainment workers and businesspeople, by offering propofol injections at the relatively low price of 300,000 won per session.

He is also accused of trying to evade monitoring by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety’s integrated narcotics control system by proposing to the addicts, "If you bring the resident registration numbers of your family members or acquaintances, I will administer more propofol." Investigations found that Mr. A illegally used the resident registration numbers of 121 individuals secured through this method to prescribe propofol 1,272 times. In addition, he obtained the details of more than 2,000 foreign nationals and used them to administer propofol as many as ten times a day in some cases. Among the addicts who received propofol from Mr. A, six reportedly died by suicide following worsening depression.

Prosecutors have also found evidence suggesting Mr. A used proceeds from his crimes—amounting to several billion won—to purchase luxury goods and imported cars, and they are proceeding with efforts to recover the criminal profits.

The next trial hearing is scheduled for September 17 at 3:30 p.m.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.