Who Is Lee Seungri?
Lee Seungri, real name Lee Seunghyun (이 승현) was the youngest member and vocalist of the globally known K-Pop group BigBang. Known for his outgoing personality and entrepreneur ambitions, Seungri made a name for himself as a talented performer and up-and-coming business mogul. Seungri became embroiled in the Burning Sun scandal in early 2019 when he was misidentified as the owner of the club.
Was Seungri The Owner of Burning Sun?
No. Seungri was a start-up investor, promotional directo, and minor shareholder but he was neither the owner nor a CEO. One of the Burning Sun CEOs has stated that Seungri held no managerial duties with the club and was only responsible for promoting the business and finding DJs to perform. [Source]
What Did Seungri Go To Jail For?
Seungri was convicted guilty on the following 9 charges:
- Violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (embezzlement of Burning Sun)
- Violation of the Food Sanitation Act (misfiling business on tax form)
- Embezzlement in the course of duty (embezzlement of Monkey Museum)
- Violation of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes (distribution of an ‘obscene’ image)
- Violation of the Act on the Punishment of Acts of Brokering Prostitution (brokering prostitution, etc.)
- Habitual gambling
- Violation of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act (failed to report gambling earnings on taxes)
- Violation of the Act on the Punishment of Acts of Brokering Prostitution (prostitution).
- Co-principle to Inciting Violence
[Source]
Is Seungri a rapist or was he involved in human trafficking?
No. This is a popular misconception due to the nature of the Burning Sun scandal and due to the circulation of online rumours. The truth of the matter is that no victim testimonies ever arise against Seungri with regards to any form of sexual assault. Furthermore, the human trafficking allegations that Burning Sun faced were proven wrong. The ‘trafficking’ charge that Seungri is said to have is a mistranslation by Western outlets. His actual charge is Violation of the Act on the Punishment of Acts of Brokering Prostitution—which, in short, means he hired someone who was already working as a sex worker. There was no force or coercion used to acquire her services. [Source 1, Source 2]
Who Was Actually Involved In The Scandal?
Dozens of people , ranging from minor to key figure involvement.
Involved in Burning Sun — Burning Sun CEOs Lee Moonho and Lee Seunghyun; Major investor Madame Lin; Major investor Cheonwon Industries CEO; Drugdealer Anna; “Whistleblower” Kim Sangkyo; Various patrons who committed SA; Various staff members who were caught filming/distributing molka; “Bob from Thailand” who was accused of rape
Involved in Lee Seungri’s Case — Lee Seungri; Yoo Inseok; Various prostitutes; Various foreign investors
Involved in the Molka Chatroom Scandal — Jung Joonyoung, Choi Jonghoon, Lee Jonghyun, Heo Hyun, Kwon Hyukjoon, Kim Incheol; Superintendent Yoon
Other Involved Parties — Yang Hyunsuk (investigated for a number of crimes, including prostitution and gambling); B.I. aka Kim Hanbin (investigated for habitual drug use); Roy and Eddy Kim (investigated for involvement in molka); Zico (rumoured to be involved in molka); Yong Junhyung (Admitted to receiving inappropriate video); Park Hanbyul (Yoo Inseok’s wife); Cha Taehyung and Kim Junho (gambling);
Why Was Seungri’s Sentence So Short?
This primarily has to do with South Korea’s sentencing structure. South Korea does not stack sentences like some other countries do. Typically, they pick the charge with the highest sentence and use that as the base, then use the other charges to ‘aggravate’ the sentence. In Seungri’s case, one of his embezzlement charges (due to the high amount embezzled) was likely used as the base sentence and the other charges were used to increase his owed fine.
The confusion with his sentence primarily stems from two reasons; 1. The misconception that Seungri was convicted for sexual assault crimes and/or human trafficking 2. The high number of charges.
When understanding Seungri’s actual charges and Korea’s sentencing structure, it becomes clear that Seungri’s sentence was actually overly harsh instead of overly lenient. When comparing Seungri’s sentence to others involved in the Burning Sun scandal with similar charges, it becomes apparent that Seungri was actually the only person with those types of charges to face jail time. Other involved parties with similar charges, even in relation to the exact crimes Seungri was charged with wherein the other party was the main perpetrator and Seungri was a co-conspirator, they were given suspended sentences (probation) instead of being ordered to spend time in prison.
How Was Goo Hara Involved In Burning Sun?
The short answer is, she wasn’t. Kang Kyungyoon has name dropped her as someone who assisted in uncovering the police official who was aiding Jung Joonyoung and Choi Jonghoon in connection with Jung’s 2016 molka scandal and Choi’s 2016 DUI scandal, neither of which were connected to the Burning Sun nightclub.
Hara’s death, too, had nothing to do with Burning Sun or Seungri, contrary to online speculation. Although Hara did not leave a note explaining the definitive reason for her taking her life, it most likely has to do with her ex boyfriend, Choi Jongbum, who’d sexually assaulted and threatened revenge porn against her, as well as the extreme online harassment she was receiving for several years leading up to her death.
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