Psy Has Been Referred to Prosecutors. The Charge Is a Prescription Drug Pickup.
Six people were referred to the Seoul Western District Prosecutors' Office on Monday. One of them is Park Jae-sang - known internationally as Psy, the artist behind "Gangnam Style."
The Seoul Seodaemun Police Station confirmed Tuesday that it has concluded its investigation and forwarded the case to prosecutors on suspicion of violating South Korea's Medical Service Act. Those referred include Psy, his manager, a professor at a Seoul university hospital who issued the prescriptions, and three others. None were detained.
The allegation is specific and procedural: Psy is accused of obtaining prescriptions for the psychotropic drugs Xanax and Stilnox through remote consultations - without the required in-person examinations - and then having his manager and other third parties collect the medication on his behalf. The suspected period runs from February 2022 through at least July 2024. Under South Korean law, which banned remote prescribing of psychotropic substances in 2021, only the patient who has been directly examined by a doctor may receive such drugs, and only the patient may collect them. Proxy pickup is permitted in narrow exceptions - for unconscious patients or those unable to move. Police stated that Psy does not fall under those categories.
Xanax (alprazolam) and Stilnox (zolpidem) are legally prescribed in South Korea for anxiety and sleep disorders respectively. Both carry a high risk of dependence and addiction, which is why the face-to-face and direct-collection requirements exist. Violations of the Medical Service Act carry penalties of up to one year in prison or a fine of up to 10 million won, approximately $6,590.
P Nation, Psy's management company, issued a statement acknowledging the core of the allegation: "The police investigation into a possible violation of the Medical Service Act related to proxy pickup of sleeping pills has concluded, and we will faithfully cooperate with the forthcoming prosecutorial investigation." An earlier statement from the agency, released when the police probe became public in 2025, was more direct: "Having had a third party collect a prescription-only sleeping medication on his behalf was clearly a mistake and an oversight."
The case follows a pattern that has attracted increasing attention in South Korea over the past year. In December 2025, SHINee member Key suspended all broadcast appearances after it emerged he had received medical treatment at home from an individual later accused of practicing medicine without a license. Key resumed activities with SHINee's comeback last week. The specifics of the two cases differ significantly - Key's involved an unlicensed practitioner; Psy's involves a licensed doctor and a question of how medication was collected - but both have raised questions about how entertainment industry figures navigate medical care.
For international audiences, Psy's name recognition complicates the story in both directions. "Gangnam Style" became the first YouTube video to reach one billion views in 2012 and remains the defining moment of K-pop's first major breakthrough in Western markets. That history means this story will travel further than it would for a Korean artist without comparable global profile. It also means the facts deserve precision: Psy has been referred to prosecutors, not charged or convicted. The prosecution will now decide whether to indict.
P Nation said the agency will cooperate with the prosecutorial investigation. The university hospital professor who issued the prescriptions has denied wrongdoing, saying the prescriptions were issued following remote consultations - which are themselves the alleged violation.
