Actor Lee Jae-ryong, 62, who is suspected of crashing into a median strip in Seoul's Gangnam District and fleeing, admitted to driving under the influence.
According to Yonhap News on the 9th, Lee Jae-ryong told police on the 7th, "I drank four shots of soju and drove. I thought I had just slightly grazed the median strip."
At about 11 p.m. on the 6th, Lee Jae-ryong was driving at high speed near Samseong Jungang Station on Seoul Subway Line 9 when he crashed into a median strip. The collision damaged a stretch of the divider spanning dozens of meters.
But Lee Jae-ryong left the scene without taking any action and parked his car at home. He was caught by police while heading to an acquaintance's house. His blood alcohol level at the time of arrest was reportedly at the license suspension level. A rapid drug test came back negative.
Police plan to estimate Lee Jae-ryong's blood alcohol concentration at the time of the crash using the Widmark formula (a formula that back-calculates based on alcohol intake, body weight, and time elapsed when direct measurement at the time of driving is difficult), drawing on evidence such as the vehicle's dashcam.
Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Commissioner Park Jeong-bo said at a regular press briefing that morning, "We are conducting a pre-booking inquiry (internal inquiry) into Mr. Lee Jae-ryong," adding, "He is expected to comply with a summons soon." Regarding Lee's denial of the DUI charge by saying he was not intoxicated at the time of the crash, Park said, "It will come out in the investigation."
This is not Lee Jae-ryong's first DUI. In 2003, he was booked for causing a DUI crash and refusing a breath test, and his license was revoked. In 2019, he received a suspension of indictment after damaging a bowling alley signboard while intoxicated.