Lee Yeon Doo Talks About Her Terrifying And Confusing Arrest

Actress Lee Yeon Doo was happy to return to Korea. The actress, who appeared in "Enjoy Life" and "Cinderella Man," was in Brazil to film the KBS reality show "Real Experience: Embrace the World," when she had an unsettling encounter with local authorities.

The show "Real Experience: Embrace the World" follows celebrities as they visit locations around the world and experience local culture. But the trip provided an experience Lee Yeon Doo could have skipped. It landed her  in jail on suspicion of smuggling. While she was filming the show, a police team arrested the actress and crew members for carrying a medical herb that was suspected of being an illegal substance. Some Korean papers reported that the confiscated herb was marijuana but the Brazilian police investigation discovered that it was not. The police eventually released the actress without any charges.

The experience ended well but while it was happening the actress was terrified. She was not sure what was going on.

"The local coordinator and the production team received the herbs, and I didn't even know about it", she told those assembled at a recent press conference. "So imagine my confusion."

As part of the program, Lee Yeon Doo was filmed picking herbs in a Brazilian park. After the event was over, she received a gift from a local tribal chief.

"The Amazonian tribal chief gave the actress a gift of a medicinal herb," said a representative from Lee Yeon Doo's agency. Although the actress did not have time to examine the gift, it was packed up and taken to the next location. When her plane landed at the next location, she was arrested on charges of smuggling. The actress was not the only person arrested. Two members of the show's production staff and the show's local coordinator were also detained, pending further investigation.  The team was arrested at gunpoint and treated like drug dealers.

Being jailed in a foreign country was naturally a shock and as the actress had flown on ahead with the producers, her manager was not even there to help her. She suffered a lot of stress while waiting to be cleared of the charges. She cried with relief when the local authorities returned her confiscated passport.

"I have never experienced anything like that in Korea," she said. "I was so confused."

Because of the time she spent waiting in a Brazilian jail for the charges to be investigated, the actress had to drop out of a film project. Altogether she spent 27 days in Brazil, returning in mid-November.