The real person who helped apprehend serial killer Yoo Young-chul and served as the motif for the movie "The Chaser" was sentenced to 3 years and 6 months in prison in the first trial.
According to Newsis, the Seoul Eastern District Court Criminal Division 7 (Presiding Judge Jo Ah-ram) sentenced Mr. Noh, 52, to 3 years and 6 months in prison and ordered a refund of 4.3 million won on charges of violating the Narcotic Control Act on the afternoon of the 11th. The court also confiscated items 1 to 3.
The court noted, "The defendant has a history of drug possession, administration, and trafficking, beginning with being penalized for administering crystal meth in 2001, and the amount of crystal meth acquired is not small. The crime of selling narcotics carries significant blame for potentially distributing narcotics. However, the defendant contributed to the capture of the murderer, and the psychological shock at that time may have influenced subsequent drug-related crimes, but the drug crimes began before that."
The court stated that, "The defendant's acknowledgment of the crime and expression of remorse, as well as contributions to the apprehension of drug offenders, are considered in determining the sentence."
Mr. Noh is accused of selling 10g of crystal meth for 3.2 million won in cash from drug user A in March of last year. He is also accused of handing A a syringe containing about 0.12g of crystal meth in May of the same year.
According to prosecutors, Mr. Noh received 1.1 million won to sell about 10g of crystal meth to A on January 7, but the transaction failed when A was arrested by the police. After A was released, it was investigated that Mr. Noh contacted A again to offer the sale of crystal meth. After receiving intelligence on these activities, the police tracked Mr. Noh and raided the accommodation where he was staying on August 7, apprehending him.
Mr. Noh is the real-life model of the character Um Jung-ho, played by actor Kim Yoon-seok in the movie "The Chaser." In July 2004, he played a significant role in the apprehension of serial killer Yoo Young-chul while working for an entertainment management company in Gangnam.
However, Mr. Noh is known to have repeatedly served time due to drug use allegations afterward. In October 2015, he was also sentenced to 3 years in prison for drug use.