SEOUL, Sept 30 (Askume) – South Korean pop star Suga, a member of boy band supergroup BTS, has been fined 15 million won ($11,500) by a court for driving under the influence while riding an electric scooter.
A judge at Seoul’s Western District Court imposed the fine in a summary judgment last week after the case was handed over to prosecutors, a court official said on Monday.
In August, the songwriter and rapper apologized for the incident , calling it “reckless and wrongful behavior,” and police also suspended his driver’s license for driving an electric scooter while intoxicated.
According to Suga’s record label Big Hit Music, which is part of Korean pop music company HYBE (352820.KS) , Suga was riding a motorcycle at night and slipped while parking. The label also said he failed a police breath test for blood alcohol content.
Since the announcement of the suspension of group projects in June 2022, BTS members have begun pursuing individual activities ahead of beginning their military service.
Yoshihide Suga, 31, has been engaged in social service work to fulfill his military duty commitments.
The drunk driving incident is the latest example of K-pop artists sometimes failing to maintain a clean image.
The matter left some BTS fans unhappy with his behavior, sending floral tributes to the HYBE headquarters and leaving messages on message boards calling for him to leave the band.
The person who is notified of the summary judgment may request a regular hearing within seven days to challenge the decision.
Suga’s record label did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(1 USD = 1,307.4600 Korean Won)
