Seungri, also known as Lee Seung-hyun, has been indicted on charges of prostitution and habitual gambling. This comes after multiple women claimed that they were drugged and provided to wealthy men at clubs in South Korea.
The 29-year-old was indicted without detention during a hearing at Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office on Thursday, January 30.
In response to the public revelation of his offenses, Seungri made a dramatic exit from the entertainment industry in March 2019.
In an Instagram post, he expressed, “I just cannot bear causing any further damage to people around me, while being hated and criticized by the public and being treated as a nation’s enemy during the investigation.”
This indictment is the latest development in the Burning Sun scandal.
According to the Seoul Metropolitan Police, numerous illegal activities took place at Burning Sun, including bribery, violence against customers, procuring prostitutes for VIPs, rape, drug trafficking, and drug use.
During the investigation, police uncovered an online group chat that shared sexually explicit videos of women filmed without their knowledge and consent. Several women also came forward to allege that they were drugged in clubs and provided to wealthy men for rape.
More than 350 individuals were arrested in connection to the operation. Seungri and several other musicians implicated in the scandal denied any wrongdoing at the time.