Seungri only owned 8% of the club and was only in the business chats of the club, so he didn’t see anything that the other members were sending in any other chats.
The victims themselves testified for him and said they didn’t want Seungri to be involved. Victim Ms. B: "I’ve never heard of any mention related to Seungri." Victim Ms. C: "There was no sex and no one even mentioned Seungri. I never had a conversation with Seungri himself." Victim A of aggravated assault in the club said: "I don’t wish for Seungri to be punished and I mentioned that during the police investigation."
The prostitution mediation charge was proven false, but it still got added to his record. Mr. Kim, ex-Arena MD, appeared as a witness and denied Seungri’s involvement in prostitution mediation: "Seungri had frequent overseas performances, so he rarely replied in the chat room. Seungri never talked about sexual desire."
The video of him "dragging the woman" is taken out of context. The girl is his friend, and they were playing a game. They were in a team together and lost, so they were dared to go on boats by the winners. She was jokingly mad about losing, and he was bringing her to the boat. The yelling in the video is him joking with her. The girl’s boyfriend was in the room and if she was being hurt, the boyfriend would have stepped in. There’s even a photo of all of them having dinner afterwards; she’s fine and everyone’s having a good time.
Reporter Kang Kyung Yoon admitted to faking a screenshot of Seungri in the KakaoTalk Molka chat, but it’s still used as "proof." She kept changing the names and words said by the celebrities in the chat, even claiming it was Seungri’s chat at first. She is the main reason Seungri is so hated and people are misinformed.
K-media and news made him look far worse than his actual charges, and pressured the authorities into jailing Seungri. Most news stations are based in Seoul, and Seungri is a Gwangju native, historically seen as a "communist" town and disliked by Seoul higher-ups. They would take any excuse to defame a Gwangju citizen, which is a core reason Seungri was used as a scapegoat. Most non-Koreans consuming misinfo about Seungri are unknowingly consuming anti-Jeollado Province propaganda. Prejudice against Jeollado Province has existed since the 1500s, and the widespread misinformation about this case is feeding into that.
Seungri was DJ in the club, and he went there only four times. People called his female friends "prostitutes," which was seen as acceptable in public opinion. They changed information and totally turned it around. He even helped police with investigations — he gave them his phone, did many drug tests that all came back negative, and even requested a lie detector, which was denied by the court. He was arrested unfairly for gambling and embezzlement and got 3 years, serving only half. The real perpetrators received less time or nothing. Seungri VOLUNTEERED to be investigated to prove his innocence. He walked into the police station and asked to be investigated — a guilty person would never risk this.
Seungri asked to be investigated
Seungri was investigated 19+ times totaling 180+ hours and was sincere in all investigations (and found no evidence in everything)
Seungri submitted his 2 phones, though media reported he refused
Seungri's lawyer said a well-known media platform called to know the truth but decided not to publish
Seungri submitted more than 100 hair follicles for drug tests including pubic hair, tested 3+ times, all negative
Seungri was treated unfairly (media used his name/pics in headlines for attention)
Seungri was blamed for everything because he is famous
Seungri gave up everything
Seungri apologized many times for things he didn’t do wrong
Seungri was hated by many due to fake news
Seungri waited patiently (9 months)
Seungri was NEVER in the molka GC, only business GC
No molka sharing
Seungri is not CEO of Burning Sun
Cleared of Palawan allegation
Yoo revealed Seungri didn't know about the prostitutes at the Christmas party
Never accused of rape or assault
Warrant rejected
Seungri was in the business GC for Mildang Pocha shop
He doesn't belong to molka GC
Singer Lee is not Seungri, it was Lee Jonghyun
He has suffered physical, psychological, and mental trauma from false accusations, fake news, and hatred of OT4-VIPs. After all, they drove him away from the entertainment industry.
Images
(The following words and pictures are from @velvetsworld on X/Twitter — huge credit to her!)
Seungri retired on March 11th, 2019 to protect those around him and fully commit to investigations. He volunteered to be investigated a month before to end rumors and let the truth be known.
Seungri's case, molka, and Burning Sun are three different cases with many people involved. Media mixed them into one big case and made Seungri the face of it.
Seungri did NOT own or manage the Burning Sun club, which was later found clean. + first and only press interview
Burning Sun released official footage of Kim inside the club, harassing a woman. He claims to "help" a victim later on.
What happened outside the club and inside the police station are two separate things.
- The actual footage shows Kim attacking the policeman by forcefully grabbing his neck and throwing himself on the floor.
- The article lies about the police attacking Kim.
Media kept fabricating rumors as facts and REFUSED to publish Seungri's side. From the very start, Seungri was silenced.
He became known as the "singer Lee" of the chat rooms, where molka was shared. Reporter Kang Kyungyoon PURPOSELY did not disclose the singer was actually Lee JONGHYUN, letting everyone guess and believe it was Seungri.
Seungri's image on X/Twitter is crooked due to a tweet making up rumors about him that blew up. The apology did not.
Seungri has no victims; no person of any gender filed any complaint against him. He has nothing to do with molka, trafficking, or any sexual misconduct. This is what he was actually charged with (Seungri only acknowledged gambling).
Opposed to the person media made Seungri out to be, he actually stepped in and protected a woman from a drunk man. This type of information never made it to the headlines.
It’s very important to direct your outrage wisely. While everyone was picking on Seungri, Jung Joonyoung's victims launched a petition and got ignored. The petition didn’t receive enough signatures, didn’t reach its goal, and victims got no justice or protection.
Seungri faced 50+ interrogations that sometimes lasted 12+ hours for a total of hundreds of hours from over 160+ officers.
The scale of the investigation was far beyond imagination
I experienced many instances of humiliation
I managed to endure it.
160+ police officers, tax officers, prosecutors, judges, anti-corruption commission, the case monitored by the president. 32 witnesses picked by prosecution. Seungri could not have bribed anyone.
Whenever Seungri showed up for an interrogation, reporters would wait like vultures. They didn’t respect personal space, made nasty comments, and tried everything to provoke him.
Journalist: Did you submit your phone to the police?
Seungri: Yes, I submitted it.
Journalist: Did you submit your old phone?
Seungri: Yes, I did.
The headlines:
Seungri lost from the start. Police was determined to arrest him, no matter the charge. Justice was never in their interest.
"We will definitely get you arrested or we will be removed from our jobs"
"Did you really not take drugs? It won’t be good for us"
Police pressured witnesses to involve Seungri's name, as if the case only mattered to convict him. The truth only came out during trial, where police actions were called out. Those who wrongfully brought up his name even cried and apologized.
Seungri was tested on numerous parts of his body, and the results always came back negative.
Seungri was supposed to enlist in 2019, which overlapped with the beginning of the case. Koreans felt he was “escaping to the military.” In order to cooperate and address public opinion, he requested to postpone his enlistment. He was then criticized for “dodging” service.
After two arrest warrants were rejected due to lack of evidence, Seungri enlisted on March 9, 2020. He continued attending weekly hearings while completing difficult military training as an active soldier. During service, he was promoted to platoon leader and received titles such as Special Warrior and Exemplary Warrior.
Seungri showed respect by bowing to the media who followed him even during enlistment. Later articles attempted to portray this negatively. Fans were present but respected COVID safety measures, unlike reporters.
Seungri expressed opposition to drug use within party environments. Below are statements from both one of his DJ colleagues and Seungri himself:
“Let’s have pure fun.”
“Just listening to music and being together already makes me feel so great.”
“Why do some people keep relying on drugs?”
“Even if he tells the truth he will be criticized.”
“Please don’t look at him with the bias created by his fame.”
“He never lied about what he has done.”
“His priority is to not cause trouble for those around him.”
“He did nothing to hurt anyone.”
Seungri’s 2018 statement about management and the importance of safety within club culture.
Seungri stepped away from all of his businesses, including his Aori Ramen franchise, donating his shares to charity.
South Korea has a conviction rate close to 99%, and offenses such as gambling are often treated with extreme seriousness.
Seungri was ruled guilty despite acknowledged lack of evidence against him. The judge noted minimal or nonexistent involvement yet imposed the highest and only prison sentence, stating that as a celebrity he must serve as an example.
Quotes from Seungri’s testimony:
“I'm paying for the sins of my friends.”
“It's only right for me to object to things I didn't do.”
“The truth about the chat rooms isn't everything you see.”
“The sexual offenses took place in a chat room where I was absent.”
“The police officer told me: I am an expert in drugs — your face looks like that of a drug user.”
“They did not announce the negative results, so no one knows about it.”
Kim Sangkyo, known as the Burning Sun “victim” and “whistleblower,” was later found guilty of sexual assault and assault. He received probation for these crimes.
Up until 2023, media coverage continued to defame Seungri and distort facts to the point where the damage appeared irreversible. His voice was never given a full opportunity to be heard during four years of coverage. Many believe he still deserves a public apology and restoration of his reputation.
Additional information:
Seungri’s court proceedings were held privately in military court. Any claims circulating online presenting “official” court documents should be treated with skepticism, as the proceedings were not publicly accessible.
https://x.com/velvetsworld/status/1623582606859149312?s=46
