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Drug charges against son of North Korean defector Tae Yong-ho dismissed

Published: 06 Feb. 2025, 17:38

Tae Yong-ho, the secretary general of the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council, speaking during a parliamentary audit session at the National Assembly in Seoul on OcT. 8, 2024. [YONHAP]

Drug use allegations against the eldest son of Tae Yong-ho, former conservative People Power Party lawmaker and North Korean defector, have been dismissed.

The Gangnam Police Precinct said Thursday that it had decided not to transfer the case against Tae's 32-year-old son to prosecutors, concluding there were no charges to be applied.

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Police launched an investigation in November last year after receiving a drug-related complaint from the Jeju Provincial Police Agency.

The accuser, who had traveled to Thailand with Tae's son in September last year, claimed to have witnessed him smoking marijuana and subsequently filed a report.

Meanwhile, Tae's son is also under police investigation for fraud charges amounting to more than 1 billion won ($690,970). According to the complaint, he allegedly approached victims by promising high returns through cryptocurrency investments, extorted tens of millions of won, and failed to repay the funds.

Lawmaker Tae is the first-ever North Korean defector secretary general of the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council, a presidential consultative body established to draft policies on unification.

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [[email protected]]