Big Bang's T.O.P remains in ICU, first court date set for end of June

Hours after a press conference held by his doctors, the first court date for troubled Big Bang rapper T.O.P was announced.

The Seoul Central Court will hold T.O.P's first court hearing for his marijuana usage on June 29, entertainment site AllKPop reported.

T.O.P is required to be present at the hearing but due to his current health condition, the date might change accordingly.

The rapper, whose real name is Choi Seung Hyun, remains "unconscious" in the intensive care unit at Ewha Womans University Hospital.

According to K-pop news site Soompi, the hospital released an official statement stating that the rapper is "still in a state of severe lethargy" as of Thursday (June 8).

They added: "There is no immediate threat to his life and we will monitor his progress over the course of a week before deciding if he will be discharged from the hospital or moved to the general ward."

He is likely to recover within a week, medical staff said at a press conference on Wednesday evening (June 7).

The hospital's head of public relations Kim Han Soo told reporters: "(Choi) came in on June 6 at 12:34PM KST. He was carried in by 3 people.

"One person held his upper body, while two others held the lower half of his body."

The staff added: "Our emergency staff examined him and found the patient was in a state of deep sleep and semiconsciousness ... He was suffering from respiratory failure due to low levels of oxygen and high levels of carbon dioxide."

Due to a dispute that arose in regard to the Big Bang star's condition, hospital officials came forward to clear the air.

Military police had earlier announced that T.O.P wasn't in a critical condition and was merely asleep as the drug he took had sleep-inducing effects.

Doctors had revealed that urine test results showed that the substance T.O.P took was benzodiazepine, a prescribed tranquilizer used to fight anxiety, adding that he took too much of the medicine.

In response to their statement, T.O.P's mother refuted claims that her son wasn't unconscious adding that he currently requires a breathing device.

YG Entertainment has also released another official statement on their artiste's scandal.

The agency said: "YG Entertainment is taking all the blame for this situation. We will accept the fact that we did not live up to expectations, and will take criticism with a heavy heart."

T.O.P has been embroiled in controversy over his marijuana use earlier this month and was expelled from his army division on June 5.

YG Entertainment subsequently revealed his hand-written apology regarding the case and fellow Big Bang member G-Dragon also stepped forward to apologise on his behalf at a recent fan meet in Japan. 

The frontman reportedly told fans: "(We're) sorry for causing a disturbance. We will make sure something like this does not happen again. Please continue to support us."

ssandrea@sph.com.sg