The Burning Sun scandal made waves across the internet when it first broke out in 2019. The amount of known and quite famous people attached to the scandal made everyone extremely uncomfortable.
These had been the same people fans and audiences across the world had adored, respected or at least thought were just powerful people. Seungri was definitely one of them due to his popularity as a member of the South Korean K-pop band ‘Big Bang’.
Now the former Big Bang member has finally been given a verdict by the South Korean Military Court. He has been sentenced to three years in jail along with a fine of 1.15 billion South Korean Won (Rs. 7,33,58,494).
The sentence has been given based on charges of arranging prostitutes or sex workers for potential business partners, gambling and fraud.
Seungri And His Sentence
Seungri or real name Lee Seung-hyun was a much-beloved member of the iconic K-pop group ‘Big Bang’. As an individual, he was even termed as the “the Great Gatsby of Korea” due to his lavish lifestyle and a huge fanbase.
The military court gave the verdict for Seungri’s case because he had joined the military last year. He had even left his place in the band and retired from the entertainment industry altogether after the scandal broke out.
Just as a refresher, the Burning Sun scandal is about a nightclub in Seoul, South Korea that was advertised as “the most elegant and finest club in South Korea” however in January 2019 the MBC Newsdesk reported about an alleged sexual assault that happened at the club.
Read More: What Does YG’s Resignation Say About The Allegations Against Seungri, Drug Trafficking & Prostitution?
This eventually led to a former employee talking about how VIP rooms had patrons illegally using drugs and then in February reports came out of prostitution, women being offered for sex after ingesting them with date rape drugs and more.
There were also accusations made about police corruption and association with club owners to hinder the investigation that led to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA) taking over the case.
Post this a bunch of KakaotTalk (a South Korean messenger app) messages were revealed that heavily implicated prostitution, drug usage on the woman and much more being done by the club owners, Seungri included. While most of the criminal investigations for the case were finished by the end of 2019 and 2020 saw some people get their verdicts, Seungri’s was handled by the South Korean Military Court.
Seungri’s attachment to this started with the fact that he was one of the seven in-house directors of the Burning Sun club and his company Yuri Holdings also had a 20% stake in the Burning Sun Entertainment company responsible for the club operations.
Although soon after the scandal broke out he resigned from his position, his agency YG Entertainment did however try to clarify that the resignation was due to his soon-to-come military enlistment.
Seungri on his part has denied most of the allegations given against him however judge Hwang Min-je commented on Seungri’s position that “It is hard to see the defendant was not aware of financial payments paid to the women for sex.”
Not just this but Seungri has also been accused of “illicit overseas gambling, operating an adult entertainment venue without a license and embezzlement,” as per an Indian Express report.
Seungri has been ordered to be sent to jail immediately, and media reports are tagging him as a “disgraced” and “scandal-ridden celebrity.”
Most of the netizens from South Korea and even international ones who followed the scandal are happy about the verdict but feel it is not enough.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: The Indian Express, BBC, Reuters
Find the blogger: @chirali_08
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