On November 24, 2018, a man named Kim Sang Kyo was reportedly assaulted at the Burning Sun, a Gangnam club owned by ex-BIGBANG‘s Seungri, after he stepped in to help a woman who was being sexually harassed. Following this altercation was a series of investigations into Burning Sun and Seungri that unveiled a web of interconnected crimes.
One of the most shocking portions of the investigation unveiled the existence of group chats where secretly taken illegal sex videos were shared and viewed by its members, who included celebrities like Seungri, Jung Joon Young, Yong Jun Hyung, and Choi Jonghoon.
Seungri (left) and Choi Jonghoon (right).
Of the idols, three received prison sentences for their crimes — Seungri received three years for nine charges, including prostitution, prostitution mediation, embezzlement, violating food safety laws, habitual gambling, and violating the foreign exchange law.
Jung Joon Young was sentenced to six years in prison for gang sexual assault and for taking and sharing illegally taken sex videos, while ex-FTISLAND Choi Jonghoon was sentenced to five years in prison for participating in gang rapes,
Jung Joon Young
The other idols mentioned, like ex-HIGHLIGHT‘s Yong Jun Hyun and former CNBLUE’s Lee Jonghyun, did not face charges for their involvement but departed from their groups and entered hiatuses.
Lee Jong Hyun Yong Jun Hyung
Less than five years after knowledge of the chats surfaced, nearly all the idols have returned to entertainment activities.
Yong Jun Hyung was not charged but admitted knowing that Jung Joon Young took illegal videos, saying he did not consider it a big deal. He resumed activities in November 2022 and was recently put back into the spotlight after he and HyunA revealed they were dating.
| Black Made
Eddy Kim was booked for “circulating obscene material” in relation to Jung Joon Young’s group chat before the prosecution suspended his indictment. It was revealed that he shared a single photo from the internet in a different group chat.
Eddie Kim
On January 23, 2024, Eddie Kim and Yoon Jong Shin released “It’ll Be Alright,” Kim’s first release since the scandal.
Choi Jonghoon’s five-year prison sentence was reduced to two, and he was released in November 2021. He was first sighted at church with his mother, during which a dispute broke out.
It was recently reported that Choi Jonghoon joined the platform Japanese platform Fanicon and expressed his desire for fans to support his future activities.
| Fanicon
Seungri was released from prison after serving 18 months of his three-year sentence. Recently, the ex-BIGBANG member hosted a birthday event in Cambodia, where he promised to bring G-Dragon to the country.
seungri got welcome warmly by many celebrities in cambodia and they even defended him. he freely out of jail. everyone please go and report all of this celebrities. #burningsun #SEUNGRI #BURNINGSUNSCANDAL #KPOP #BIGBANG pic.twitter.com/Lc5ORK4W3A
— RJ (@zwxtqs) January 22, 2024
Seungri diciendo Fuck you all mandando a la mierda a todos, dedo del medio pic.twitter.com/hJl7pHiDut
— media (@mediavidstw) January 21, 2024
Jung Joon Young is still in prison, meaning the only free idol who has not returned is Lee Jonghyun, who has not been heard from since.
While most of these idols’ returns have been criticized heavily by netizens, they still have loyal fans who will receive them.
