K-pop singer sentenced to 18 months in S. Korean prison for smoking marijuana

SEOUL, July 22 (Yonhap) — A Seoul court on Wednesday sentenced a male K-pop singer to 18 months in prison for smoking marijuana.

The Seoul Western District Court handed down the sentence to Kang Min-ho, better known by his stage name E Sens, for smoking marijuana three times between September 2014 and March 2015 at his home and a parking lot in western Seoul.

Kang was also ordered to pay a fine of 550,000 won (US$476).

He was not immediately reached for comment.

The court said the nature of the crime is not minor, citing his criminal record.

In 2012, he was sentenced to 14 months behind bars after being caught smoking marijuana, though the sentence was suspended for two years.

Under South Korean law, use of marijuana is banned and its users can be sentenced to a maximum of five years in jail or fined up to 50 million won.