South Korean Actor Under Police Investigation for Drunk Driving After Gangnam Crash

Seoul, South Korea — South Korean actor Lee Jae-ryong is under police investigation after a traffic crash in the Gangnam district, with authorities saying his blood-alcohol level at the time was at a threshold that would trigger license suspension. Police also note that he has a history of drunk driving.

Yonhap News Agency reports, in an exclusive, that on the evening of the 6th Lee and companions including a manager gathered for drinks at a barbecue restaurant in Gangnam. They stayed there from about 7:00 p.m. for roughly 90 minutes before moving to a colleague’s officetel nearby. The officetel is a separate address from the friend’s residence.

Lee remained at the officetel for more than two hours and left around 10:50 p.m. He then returned to the initial restaurant, retrieved his car from where it had been parked, and began driving. He struck the central dividers along a street near Cheongdam Station in an incident that followed.

Police say they tracked Lee to the area about three hours after the crash and encountered him on a street in Gangnam. He voluntarily accompanied officers to a local police station, according to investigators.

The actor told police that his first drinking session at the barbecue restaurant involved four shots of soju. Given his previously reported drinking history and the post-crash measurement at a license-suspension level, investigators are examining whether he consumed alcohol at the officetel as well.

Lee’s legal representative told Yonhap News Agency that there is no comment to offer at this time.

Why this matters beyond Korea: The case illustrates South Korea’s strict enforcement of drunk-driving laws and the readiness of authorities to pursue high-profile incidents, including the use of CCTV footage to reconstruct events. For U.S. readers, it underscores parallels in how Korea handles road safety, celebrity accountability, and the potential impact on entertainment careers and sponsorships when public figures are involved. It also highlights the global audience for Korean media and the implications of such incidents for cross-border perception of Korea’s safety, law enforcement practices, and the reliability of real-time investigative reporting.