[UPDATED] CN BLUE’s Lee Jong Hyun’s Confesses to be a Member of the Burning Sun Chat Group After Chats Leak
CW: Sexism, sexual assault, sexual exploitation, invasion of privacy
More updates on the “Burning Sun Scandal.”
SBS 8 O’Clock News has released the KakaoTalk Messages between CN BLUE’s Lee Jong Hyun and members of the “Burning Sun Scandal” chat group, which revealed the candid discussion of his sex life as well as sexist views.
For more details, see below:
SBS reported on the following conversations [swear words and explicit sexual acts were censored for news broadcasting purposes].
Conversation 1
Lee Jong Hyun: Yesterday I *** with [names redacted].
Jung Joon Young: Nice. Introduce me next time.
Lee Jong Hyun: Send me a woman quick.
[The request he made for the specific type of woman was censored out.]
Jung Joon Young: Who should I give you?
Lee Jong Hyun: If you have ones you haven’t *** that would be good, but if not then just a pretty ***.
Conversation 2
Lee Jong Hyun: Do you have any *** that are young, pretty, and nice? Ones that are good to play with kekeke [symbols for laughter.]”
FNC Entertainment previously said in a statement that Lee Jong Hyun had no relation to this issue, and had only been an acquaintance of the celebrities who were involved in the controversy.
Update
Lee Jong Hyun has also enlisted in the military in October 2018 and has released a statement a day following the chats were leaked through FNC Entertainment.
“On the night of March 12, our agency released a statement regarding our artist Jonghyun that stated, ‘he had only contacted the certain socially controversial celebrities as friends and they have nothing to do and no connection with the recent scandal.’
Jonghyun, who is currently serving in the military, agreed to cooperate with the investigations of police who visited his unit on the afternoon of the 12th, before we released our official statement. We released the statement as Jonghyun did not remember circulating any illegal videos, seeing any inappropriate videos or participating in any conversations that may cause an issue in the approximately 20 1:1 chat logs with Jung Joon Young presented by the police.
We had no choice but to release a statement based on Jonghyun’s memory as it was difficult to confirm the facts about a chatroom conversation that occurred 4-5 years ago as he had already left the chatroom long ago. We had no intentions of hiding the facts or condoning his wrongdoings.
After SBS’s report on the 14th, we got in contact with Jonghyun and confirmed the facts. He is deeply reflecting upon his watching the videos in the chatroom or inappropriate conversation related to belittlement of women or sex. If he had proper sexual awareness, he would not have sat by and watched but he is regretful about the fact that he did. We apologize to those who have suffered due to the immoral and promiscuous conversations that took place without a sense of guilt and to everyone who was disappointed by this issue.
Jonghyun, who is ashamed and regretful, has accepted the criticism from the public due to his wrong sexual ethics and values and is deeply regretful and guilty. He will be more cautious about is words and actions as a public figure, reflect upon himself and atone for his past mistakes.”
K-Pop Timeout will continue to update on this scandal.
[BREAKING + CONFIRMED] FTISLAND’s Choi Jong Hoon Leaves Group + Retires - Hongki Speaks Up
(CW: Sexual assault, sexual exploitation, invasion of privacy, corruption)
More updates on the continuing “Burning Sun Scandal.”
Following confirmation of F.T. ISLAND’s leader Choi Jong Hoon’s involvement as a business partner in Seungri’s many controversial ventures, his participation in the illegal sex tape sharing group chat, and his bribery of the police to cover up his drunk driving, FNC Entertainment has announced that Jong Hoon will be leaving F.T. ISLAND and retiring from the entertainment industry.
This official release comes hours after F.T. ISLAND’s main vocalist Lee Hongki responded to a fan comment asking him to support Jong Hoon.
To read FNC’s statement and Hongki’s thoughts on the scandal, see below.
FNC Entertainment:
It was decided today that Choi Jong Hoon, who has evoked criticism with involvement in a recent series of incidents, will be leaving FTISLAND.
Our agency would like to make it clear that there was no intention to hide or cover up the truth regarding these matters. Previously, based on our relationship of mutual trust, we checked with him on what he remembers regarding the past incidents before releasing statements. We express deep apologies for causing confusion by releasing inaccurate statements through this process.
There are additional suspicions regarding illegal acts although he says he does not remember them, so he will diligently receive a police investigation sometime this week. Choi Jong Hoon has decided to leave the team forever and will retire from the entertainment industry
The agency realizes the severity and feels responsible for these matters, and we will fully cooperate with the police investigation process so that the truth can be clearly identified.
Choi Jong Hoon expresses his apologies to those who received harm due to his inappropriate and embarrassing words and actions in the past. He is also deeply reflecting on the disappointment he has given to many fans and the members of his team. The agency expresses our deep apologies for being inattentive in managing and teaching proper character to our artists and for causing trouble to many people due to an unfortunate matter.
Choi Jong Hoon will now halt celebrity life and live while reflecting on himself. The agency also cannot avoid responsibility regarding Choi Jong Hoon’s words and actions that cannot be forgiven by society so we will guide him until the end towards living as a member of society with an upright perception.
[The agency] once again promises to be more thorough and strict in our management and education of all artists. We apologize.
Hours before the statement was made, a Japanese Primadonna (F.T. ISLAND fan) commented on one of Hongki’s Instagram posts, asking him to support Jong Hoon through this tough time - “It is not time to give up on Jong Hoon.” In response, Hongki replied curtly with “I’m giving up.”
Hongki’s tone suggested that this is not the first time the group had to put up with Jong Hoon’s behaviour. Because of Jong Hoon’s scandal, Hongki himself also became a rumoured suspect in the case. However, the journalist who broke the scandal, Kang Kyeong Yoon, has confirmed that Hongki has no involvement to the “Burning Sun Scandal” at all.
K-Pop Timeout will continue to update on this controversy.
