Former BIGBANG member, Lee Seung-Hyun – better known as Seungri – was sentenced to three years in prison on multiple charges; of which include prostitution mediation and overseas gambling.
In early 2020, he had faced allegations for organizing prostitutes for investors, embezzlement, bribery, illegal gambling, and violation of foreign currency exchange and food hygiene laws. He denied the allegations.
The South Korean Defense Ministry said the former member of the boy band Big Bang was also fined 1.15 billion won ($989,000). He was taken into custody after the ruling by an army court in Yongin, near Seoul.
Seungri’s indictment is the latest development in the infamous “Burning Sun scandal”.
BURNING THE SCANDAL
The Burning Sun scandal is a 2019 entertainment and sex scandal in Seoul, South Korea.
It took place in the nightclub – Burning Sun – which involved several celebrities, including Korean idols of popular K-pop groups, and police officials. Seungri sat on the board of the club and oversaw its publicity.
According to the Seoul Metropolitan Police, Burning Sun was the site of bribery, violence against customers, securing prostitutes for VIPs, rape, drug trafficking, and drug use. Numerous women have come forward with claims of being assaulted or drugged at the club. Since the allegations, Burning Sun had closed – and a handful of stars have been affected by the scandal.
During the course of the investigation, police discovered an online group chat that shared sexually explicit videos of women filmed without their knowledge and consent. In March 2019, police named several high-profile K-pop stars as members of the group.
People outside the entertainment industry have also been brought down by the Burning Sun scandal.
A former police officer was sentenced to one year in jail in August for accepting a 20 million won bribe ($17,300) to stop investigating allegations of a minor entering the club, according to South Korean news agency Yonhap.
According to Yonhap, Burning Sun’s operator, Lee Mun-ho, was sentenced to one year in prison in November for illegal substance use, while another employee — surnamed Cho — was sentenced in December to four years and six months in prison for illegal substance possession and drug trafficking.
ABOUT SEUNGRI
Before being disgraced, Seungri was one of the biggest stars in K-pop due to the success of BigBang, which attracted huge followings in Asia and other parts of the world after its debut in 2006. Forbes magazine reported in 2016 that the group had made $44 million in pretax earnings the previous year.
