Former South Korea singer Seungri has been sentenced to three years in prison on Thursday, August 12.
In a report from Korean media outlet Soompi, the sentencing trial was held at the military court for Seungri, who has been indicted for nine charges, which are violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Economic Crimes, violation of the Food Sanitation Act, embezzlement, violation of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment, etc. of Sexual Crimes, habitual gambling, violation of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act, prostitution mediation, purchase of prostitution services, and special violence instigation.
Seungri, whose real Lee Sung-Hyun, was also fined 1,156,900,000 won (approximately $994,544).
His personal information will be registered in the national registry for the violation of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment, etc. of Sexual Crimes.
“The defendant conspired with Yoo In Suk to mediate prostitution for foreign investors on several occasions and gained profits. The defendant’s crimes that commercialized sex have a large negative influence on society," the court commented regarding the charge on prostitution mediation.
The court also stated, “As his testimonies were inconsistent and changed between the police investigation, prosecution investigation, and at court, his credibility is low.”
The trial of Seungri, accoridng to Reuters, is part of a far-reaching scandal involving a network of pop stars, businessmen and cops alleged to have colluded and enabled tax evasion, bribery, and prostitution at some of the glitziest clubs in Seoul's swanky Gangnam district.
The scandal, which was centred around several nightclubs that Lee was involved in, also swept up other K-pop stars, including Jung Joon-young and Choi Jong-hoon, who in 2019 were sentenced to six and five years in prison, respectively, after they were convicted of gang-raping a woman.
Jung was also found guilty of filming the assault and distributing the footage, which came to light when police were investigating Lee. Sentences for both Jung and Choi were later reduced.
YG Entertainment Inc, the agency that had represented Lee until he was forced to quit the entertainment industry after the allegations surfaced in March 2019, was not immediately available for comment on the ruling.
Seungri made his official debut in August 2006 along with BIGBANG's four other members: G-Dragon, T.O.P, Taeyang and Daesung.
