K-pop stars Jung Joon Young and Choi Jong Hoon receive new sentences after court appeal

Former Korean pop stars Jung Joon Young and Choi Jong Hoon have had their prison sentences reduced following an appeal trial yesterday, May 11.

Late last year, singer-songwriter Jung Joon Young and former FT Island member Choi Jong Hoon were found guilty of gang-raping two different victims on two separate occasions in 2016. They were joined by three other unnamed individuals.

Jung, 31, was additionally convicted of secretly filming himself having sex with other women and sharing the video without their consent.

According to previous court hearings, Jung Joon Young will be receiving a six-year prison sentence while Choi Joon Hoon will get five. Both the defendants and the prosecution appealed the verdict that led to a new round of court hearings that started in February this year.

Yesterday, the Seoul High Court led by judge Yoon Jong Gu cut Jung's sentence to five years and halved Choi's five-year term to two years and six months.

The court explained, “Jung Joon Young did not submit a written agreement with the victim. We have taken into consideration the fact that though the defendant continues to deny the charges, he is able to describe the situation at the time in great detail. But he is also sincerely reflecting on his actions.”

Meanwhile, Choi had reached an agreement with one of the victims which was partly reflected in the High Court's decision. Furthermore, he continues to deny the charges and was said to lack ”sincere self-reflection.”

Both will undergo 80 hours of sexual violence treatment program and will face a five-year restriction on employment at facilities related to children, adolescents, and the disabled.

Also known as “molka,” meaning secret camera, it is a new kind of sex crime sweeping South Korea wherein men are exposed to be secretly filming women in schools, public toilets, and elsewhere.

The case was the highest-profile example of this crime in South Korea, which has prompted widespread anger across the nation and was dubbed as a “porn epidemic.”

Jung Joon Young and Choi Jong Hoon were discovered during a separate police investigation into K-pop star Seungri --- who was reportedly a member of Jung's group chat.

Seungri, a member of boy group BIGBANG, has been charged with supplying prostitutes to potential business investors.

Police reportedly found Jung's videos while investigating that case.

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