The musician had attended a hearing and apologised to victims hours before his arrest
Korean singer Jung Joon Young has been arrested after he shared sex videos that had been secretly filmed.
The 30-year-old attended a hearing earlier today (March 21) to decide whether or not a warrant would be issued for his arrest over the allegations that he shared videos of a sexual nature without the consent of the women in them.
Speaking to reporters at Seoul Central District Court, he apologised to the victims and “everyone who has showed affection for me.”
The Associated Press reports he was later taken to a police station in downtown Seoul in handcuffs. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency reportedly requested a warrant for his arrest through state prosecutors on Monday (March 18).
Jung announced his retirement from the entertainment industry last week (March 13) as he confessed his wrongdoings. “I admit to all my crimes,” he said in a statement. “I filmed women without their consent and shared it in a chatroom, and while I was doing so I didn’t feel a great sense of guilt.
“Most of all, I kneel down to apologise to the women who appear in the videos and all those who might be disappointed and upset at this shocking incident.”
His confession followed the news that Seungri, a member of K-pop boyband Big Bang, had announced he was retiring from music following charges of supplying prostitutes. Seungri was allegedly a member of a chatroom in which Jung had shared the videos. He is currently being investigated by the police but has denied all the allegations against him.
It is reported that three male artists were in the chatroom, and that sexual videos of at least 10 women were shared.
Jung was charged last week with illegal filming and leaking visual material. He was previously charged with filming a partner during sex without her consent in 2016, but the case was dropped when the allegations were withdrawn.
Secretly filmed sexual content is known as “molka” in South Korea and is said to have become dangerously popular online in recent years. Last year, thousands of women protested in Seoul, calling for tougher sentences for people who were caught secretly filming women. In 2017, over 5,400 people were arrested for molka related crimes, but fewer than two percent of that number were jailed.
