Actor Son Seung-won has received a heavier sentence in his second trial compared to the first.
On August 13, the Seoul Western District Court's first criminal division, led by Judge Ban Jung-woo, overturned the one-year prison sentence from the first trial and imposed a two-year sentence for charges including drunk driving under the Road Traffic Act.
The court stated, "He attempted to conceal evidence unfavorable to his girlfriend by hiding the black box SD card, indicating a serious nature of the crime."
It added, "He also made a false statement claiming that the designated driver abandoned the car, and driving under the influence for approximately 7 kilometers, including 1 minute and 30 seconds of driving in the wrong direction on the Han River Boulevard, posed a significant public danger."
The court noted, "Considering Son's previous drunk driving offenses, the one-year sentence from the first trial was too lenient given that he committed the crime again."
However, the court acknowledged that he eventually admitted to his actions and that no traffic accident occurred. It also considered that he submitted the SD card after the evidence concealment was discovered as mitigating factors.
Additionally, the court upheld the first trial's decision to suspend a fine of 1.5 million won for Son's girlfriend, Kim, who faced charges of evidence concealment, deeming the original judgment reasonable.
Son was arrested in November of last year for driving in the wrong direction on the Han River Boulevard while heavily intoxicated for about two minutes. He was indicted in February of this year.
At the time of his arrest, his blood alcohol concentration was more than double the level that would result in a license suspension (0.08% or higher).
* This article has been translated by AI.
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