Burning Sun, the scandal that shook the K-Pop world

The Burning Sun scandal shook the world of K-Pop in 2019, uncovering a series of sex crimes that involved a number of Korean celebrities and members of police.

The BBC is examining the investigation and fallout to it in a new documentary named Burning Sun, where it explores how two female journalists in Korea battled the odds to get the story to the public. It came as a shock to K-Pop fans around the world because it involved some of the biggest stars in the industry: BIGBANG member Seungri, rock singer Jung Joon-young, and former FT Island guitarist Choi Jong-hoon.

The Burning Sun scandal explained

The case was first blown wide open in 2019, when the alleged assault of a male clubber at the Burning Sun nightclub led to the discovery of even darker acts taking place in the venue owned by BIGBANG member Seungri.

The clubgoer claimed he was trying to help a woman being sexually harassed but was assaulted by staff, and footage of the incident showed police watching on as the clubgoer was attacked and then arrested him rather than the staff. An investigation was soon launched, revealing sinister goings on in the club such as prostitution and drug trafficking.

Allegations of sexual bribery were soon raised against Seungri, who it was claimed was using prostitution in order to cater to important clients. It was revealed that several women who went to Burning Sun were being drugged with date rape drugs at the club so they could be taken to "VIP" members, some of whom would rape the women and film the assault.

The act of secretly taking pictures and video of people without consent is known as "Molka" in South Korea, and is an issue that is growing more and more problematic. The BBC report that the crime has actually grown elevenfold since the Burning Sun scandal.

Through the investigation into Burning Sun it was revealed that a KakaoTalk group chat had been set up by Jung, in which he and other members would share videos of sexual assault and rape and the incidents dated back as far as 2015. One conversation revealed that Jung had drugged one of his fans and he, Choi and a number of other men, had gang-raped her.

In March 2019, Jung wrote a letter of apology in which he confessed to being involved in illegal hidden camera filming, and announced his retirement from the entertainment industry.

The chat room conversations also implicated Seungri, who was said to have prompted staff at his club to arrange prostitutes for investors. He was charged with sexual bribery in March 2019.

Seungri was later charged with distributing secretly obtained photographs that same month, and he admitted to distributing indecent images but claimed not to have filmed anything illegally. In April, Seungri was also charged on suspicion of embezzlement.

By January 2020, Seungri had been issued seven charges — procuring prostitution for himself and others, sharing illegally taken photos, embezzlement, gambling, illegal currency transactions, and violation of Food Sanitation Law. His military enlistment began in March 2020 while the investigation continued, and his military trial began in September where he denied all charges except for illegal currency transactions.

Where are the K-Pop stars involved in the Burning Sun scandal now?

In August 2021 Seungri was sentenced to a three year prison sentence and was fined 1.15 billion won (£670k), he appealed this conviction and his sentence was reduced by half to one year and six months. He served his reduced 18-month prison sentence from May 2022 until February 2023.

Jung was charged with gang rape, and secretly filming and sharing sexual videos, he was sentenced to six years in prison which was later reduced to five. Choi was sentenced to two and a half years for gang rape, and both he and Jung were ordered to take part in 80 hours of sexual violence treatment courses.

Choi Jong-hoon was released from prison in November 2021, and Jung Joon-young was released from prison in March 2024 after serving a five year sentence.

The BBC's Burning Sun documentary will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer on Sunday, 19 May.

If you feel you have been sexually assaulted you can contact the Rape Crisis National Telephone Helpline on 0808 802 9999 (12-2.30pm and 7-9.30pm every day of the year) or visit https://rapecrisis.org.uk/get-help/.

You can also contact Women's Aid, Victim Support, The Survivors Trust or Survivors UK (for male victims of sexual assault). Or you can contact the 24-hour freephone National Domestic Abuse Helpline, run by Refuge, on 0808 2000 247.