Meth overdoses could be the cause of the two deaths – just hours apart – of a patron and a staff member of a late-night bar in Seoul’s Gangnam, police investigating the case said Sunday. 

On July 5, at around 8 a.m., a man in his 20s was found unconscious in his car at a park in southern Seoul. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. 

About two hours later, a woman in her 30s was found dead at her home. The deceased was an employee of a bar in Gangnam and had drunk with a group of patrons until dawn, which included the deceased man, it turned out. 

Investigators at the Gangnam Police Station have been looking into the possibility that the two’s deaths may be drug-related after securing testimony from one of the patrons that the deceased man appeared to have added something that looked like narcotics to his drink. 

The deceased woman also drank something mixed with a substance, according to a witness statement from her co-worker. 

Investigators have discovered nearly 64 grams of methamphetamine inside the man’s car. 

While waiting for autopsy results on the deceased, the authorities are also doing a drug screening test on all those who attended the drinking session and trying to determine whether the deceased had voluntarily consumed the outlawed substance or if somebody put it in their glass without their knowledge. 

By Choi Jae-hee (cjh@heraldcorp.com)