K-pop star T.O.P attends first hearing for marijuana charges, admits to all charges

South Korean pop star T.O.P arrives at a court on June 29 to attend his trial on charges of smoking marijuana. The rapper from K-pop boy band Big Bang was accused of smoking marijuana on four occasions in his home in Seoul last October and has partially admitted to the charges. PHOTO: AFP
T.O.P. bows as he arrives at a court in Seoul, South Korea, on June 29. PHOTO: REUTERS

SEOUL - On the first day of the trial on Thursday, South Korean prosecutors said they were seeking a 10-month jail sentence suspended for two years for BigBang rapper T.O.P, who has been charged with using marijuana on four occasions last year.

The 29-year-old, who previously denied using liquid marijuana on two of the four occasions, admitted to all the charges on Thursday, said reports.

According to allkpop website, his lawyer revealed that the rapper's girlfriend then, a 21-year-old trainee singer, had offered him marijuana while he was drunk. Afterwards, T.O.P broke up with her and stopped smoking marijuana, the lawyer said.

Clad in a black suit for the hearing in the Seoul Central District Court, T.O.P read a statement of apology in front of the press, said The Korea Herald.

He said: "I was foolish. In the past, I wanted to escape from myself in the dark due to depression and severe anxiety disorder. My disorderly state of mind led to impulsive wrongdoing and an irrevocable mistake, and I disappointed many people."

He ended the statement by apologising to his mother.

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