How far will the "injection aunt" gate sparked by Park Narae spread?
The fallout from comedian Park Narae's so-called "injection aunt" gate has swept over the entertainment industry. From Park Narae to SHINee member Key and YouTuber Short Mouth Sun, they have been leaving programs one after another as the controversy continues. Key acknowledged his ignorance, reflected, apologized and chose to lay low, and Short Mouth Sun also reflected and apologized and suspended activities.
However, Park Narae has not revealed any definitive position, and meanwhile allegations have piled up, making the fallout grow uncontrollably.
Park Narae is under suspicion of illegal medical practices as the so-called "injection aunt" controversy erupted amid recent allegations of power abuse by former managers. The issue arose when Dispatch published photos on the 6th showing Park Narae receiving injections in ordinary homes and officetels without professional medical facilities. The outlet also raised questions about prescription by proxy through text messages and other means, fueling the controversy.
And Park Narae's injection aunt gate opened. The aunt identified as the injection aunt claimed on her personal social media through a mobile messenger profile that she was a professor at a Chinese medical school. She reportedly said, "It is true that I was a professor at the Inner Mongolia medical school from 2014 to 2019. I simply could not go to Inner Mongolia because of COVID, I struggled with the COVID economic hardship, and I was latey informed that in July 2021 it was changed to a university of science and technology," according to reports.
The problem was that the Inner Mongolia Pokang Medical University Hospital she said she graduated from was denied by medical groups as a ghost medical school with no substance, and that she had no medical license in Korea.
In response, Park Narae has kept silent, saying she will settle disputes in court. The more she remained silent, the more revelations accumulated. On the recently aired MBN news program News Fighter, a former manager of Park Narae appeared in person and drew attention by revealing the actual medicine packet that he claimed Park Narae had been continuously receiving from the injection aunt. The former manager claimed the packet contained a pink "butterfly-shaped pill" that was also reported to have been found in Short Mouth Sun.
The former manager also claimed that Park Narae already seemed to have developed a tolerance to the drug. He said, "There were times when she took two packets of sleeping pills at once. The medicine packets handed over by the injection aunt were not in the usual 'breakfast, lunch, dinner after meals' form but were divided into several time slots and were set so they could be taken at any time, which made the risk of abuse seem high."
A psychiatrist who appeared on the broadcast said of the pill, "It is presumed to be phentermine. This is a controlled substance prescription drug that requires a doctor's prescription," and warned, "It suppresses appetite, but if overused it can cause side effects such as anxiety, insomnia and palpitations. Some take it expecting stimulant effects, so it has a high risk of abuse. This drug is prohibited from being prescribed continuously for more than 28 days, and if it was repeatedly taken outside a medical institution, it could be a problem."
The controversy also applied to Short Mouth Sun. Short Mouth Sun has suspended activities amid allegations related to the injection aunt. However, Short Mouth Sun said she first met the woman at a hospital in Seoul's Gangnam introduced by an acquaintance and believed she was a doctor, and while she had received home visits from the woman amid a busy schedule, she said she had not gone to any other locations.
However, Short Mouth Sun was also booked on suspicion of receiving the diet drug "butterfly drug," classified as a controlled substance, from the woman. A complaint alleging that Short Mouth Sun and her manager violated the Medical Service Act and the Narcotics Control Act was filed with the Seoul Mapo Police Station, and the drug crime investigation team is to be assigned the case and begin an investigation.
Short Mouth Sun's side denied the allegation, saying, "She received a 'swelling drug' prescribed at the hospital where the person worked, but it is unrelated to the diet drug (butterfly drug) or IV drips."
Park Narae has also been accused of having the "injection aunt" clash with the production team of MBC variety show I Live Alone. The former manager who appeared on News Fighter claimed, "Park Narae was fully aware that the injection aunt was illegal," and alleged that there was a dispute between the injection aunt and the production team during I Live Alone's filming in Taiwan.
According to the former manager, during the Taiwan shoot, when Park Narae did not come out after some time the production team went to her lodging, and there were medicine and the injection aunt in the hotel room. When the production team asked her identity, she argued, saying, 'I am a doctor. The MBC president knows and all the celebrities know,' the former manager claimed. He added that Park Narae told her managers to keep quiet and to have the company stay silent as well.
Separate from Park Narae's choice to remain silent and fight the dispute legally, the fallout from the "injection aunt" gate does not appear likely to subside easily. /seon@soen.co.kr
[photo] OSEN DB.
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