Singer Crown J receives suspended jail term

Crown J [FlyBoy Entertainment]

Hip-hop singer Crown J, real name Kim Kei-hoon, has received a suspended prison sentence for illegal drug use.

The Seoul Central District Court on Thursday handed the 31-year-old artist an eight-month jail term suspended by two years, along with 80 hours of community service and a 7,500 won fine.

Kim had been arrested in December of last year, after police suspected him of smoking marijuana at a recording studio in Atlanta of the U.S.

The court yesterday declared him guilty of using the drug five times, between April 2009 and November 2010, while stating that drug crimes committed by celebrities in Korea "have an immense negative effect on teenagers" as the reason for the ruling.

He also "caused unnecessary misunderstanding" by changing his testimony on the number of times he used the drug.

However, the court also "took into consideration the fact that this was his first offense, that he took the drug to become acquainted with artists in the country for his music career there, and that the crime did not lead to additional crimes."

Kim apologized after the ruling while adding that he will not appeal against it. "Never again will I stir up trouble. There is no justification for what I did, nor do I have any intention of laying forth excuses for it."

Kim, who debuted in Korea in 2006, gained popularity the following year after releasing his song "I Will Take Her Away" combined with his appearance in make-believe reality show "We Got Married" where he played the husband of solo songstress Seo In-young.

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Reporter : Kim Myung-hyun
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@