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Park Yong-ha 'Suffered Stress and Depression'

The actor and singer Park Yong-ha had parted ways with his former manager and was under stress running his own business before he was found dead in an apparent suicide Wednesday morning, sources in the entertainment industry say.

Park had split with his manager, who became the head of an entertainment agency, late last year and often talked about his disappointment in relationships with people when he began managing his own affairs. He appears to have suffered added pressure when he found out that his father had cancer, several of his acquaintances said

Police said Park had hung himself on his bedpost with an electrical wire. His mother, who found the body, called emergency services immediately, but it was too late. Police said suicide was the most probable cause since there were no signs of forced entry or a struggle. Park left no will or suicide note to give a clue to the motive.

Two or three days before his death, Park apparently told friends that his work and life were "too difficult". Police heard testimony from Park's friends that he suffered from insomnia due to stress and was taking sleeping pills. According to the wishes of the family, no autopsy will be conducted.

Park had returned to Korea on Saturday for a brief stay after a series of successful concerts in Japan marking the release of his new album. He had been busy meeting with friends and associates on the day before he died. On Tuesday he returned home around midnight after drinking with friends and spoke with his father, who is in the terminal stage of stomach cancer, massaging his back and legs. Park is said to have cried and told his father he wished he was the one who was sick.

Police believe his suicide was impulsive. One executive at an entertainment agency who was close to Park said, "He often seemed sad and gloomy because of his father's illness".

His father, Park Seung-in, was an album producer in the 1970s and 80s and a manager for several popular Korean singers. His showbiz background had a profound influence on his son. Park debuted at the age of 17 in 1994 in an MBC TV drama. He rose to fame after appearing along with Bae Yong-joon and Choi Ji-woo in the hit TV series "Winter Sonata" and received the Golden Disk award in Japan for four consecutive years since 2005.

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