Veteran rapper BillsTacks, formerly known as Vasco, has been indicted on drug charges in South Korea, marking his third drug-related case.
According to a report by Edaily published October 21, the Suwon District Prosecutor’s Office indicted the rapper (real name Shin Dong-yeol, in his 40s) on October 16 for violating the Narcotics Control Act.
Prosecutors allege that BillsTacks purchased marijuana and marijuana jelly from a male dealer in his 30s last November and used them. The case came to light when a joint government drug-crime investigation unit, while tracking the dealer, confirmed BillsTacks’ purchase and use.
Records cited in the report show this is his third brush with drug charges: he was indicted without detention in 2006 over marijuana smoking, and again in 2018 over a 2015 case involving marijuana, ecstasy, and cocaine.
BillsTacks has publicly advocated for marijuana legalization. During promotions for his fifth full-length album “DETOX” in 2020, he said he viewed changing the perception of marijuana as a drug as a “detox” process, and expressed hope that medical marijuana would become widely available and recreational marijuana legalized.
He debuted in 2004 with his first album “The Genesis” under the name Vasco and later appeared on Mnet’s “Show Me The Money” before changing his stage name to BillsTacks in 2016.
No official statement from the rapper’s side on the indictment has been reported. The case now moves to trial.
