"Present at the Scene but None of It True" Taesaja's Lee Dong-yoon Clarifies Crime Allegations

Group Tae Sa Ja Lee Dong Yoon / Photo by JTBC, screenshot from 'Two Yoo Project - Sugar Man 3'

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ga-yeon] Lee Dong-yoon of the group Taesaja has been accused of being involved in criminal activities in the past. In response, Lee Dong-yoon's agency Creative 'Kkot' stated that the allegations are not true and indicated a strong stance on taking legal action.

On the 9th, Creative Kkot clarified through multiple media outlets, "The main titles in the current articles such as delinquent, fleeing to the U.S., extortion, and criminal are not true." They added, "We plan to take strong legal measures against the unverified posts."

Lee Dong-yoon also denied the allegations through his agency on the same day. He said, "First, I sincerely apologize for causing controversy from early morning. It is true that I was at that place, but the stories in the articles are not entirely true."

He continued, "I have thought a lot about where to start explaining. Since these are my mistakes from my reckless childhood 27 years ago, rather than arguing over each detail, I thought it was right to acknowledge that time and sincerely apologize, so I am leaving this statement."

He added, "I deeply regret and reflect on those matters again," and apologized once more, saying, "I sincerely apologize for causing pain to my fans and everyone with such unfortunate stories."

Finally, he said, "This is my personal matter," and added, "I sincerely hope that my members, who have worked hard and lived well, will not be harmed because of me."

On the 9th, a post titled "Isn't one of the Taesaja members who appeared on Sugarman a convicted criminal?" was uploaded to an online community. Photo by Online Community Capture

Earlier, Sports Chosun reported that testimonies emerged claiming Lee Dong-yoon was involved in criminal activities in the past.

According to the report, an acquaintance who knew Lee Dong-yoon in the past said, "Lee Dong-yoon was involved in criminal activities and was arrested by the police. I remember it was when he was in the third year of middle school. I believe he was detained for one or two months and then released under probation."

Also, on the same day, an online community post titled "Isn't one of the Taesaja members who appeared on Sugar Man a criminal?" was confirmed to have been posted.

The author claimed, "My cousin sister lived in the same neighborhood as Taesaja member Lee Dong-yoon. He was a delinquent in middle school and caused a lot of trouble with alcohol and smoking," and added, "He was caught by the police while committing 'ppeokchigi' in middle school and was on probation, then he immigrated to the U.S." Ppeokchigi is a slang term referring to the act of snatching handbags.

The author criticized, "During Taesaja's peak activities, it was not the smart era, so it passed unnoticed, but times have changed now. Is it okay to make a comeback and promote so casually? Still, I don't think criminals should appear on broadcasts."

Meanwhile, Lee Dong-yoon debuted with Taesaja in 1997 and left many hit songs such as "Time," "Do," "Hoesimga," "Aesim," "Si," and "Again." In 1998, he gained great popularity by winning the Video Album Award and SBS Gayo Daejeon Rookie Award.

Taesaja appeared as a full group on JTBC's "You Quiz on the Block - Sugar Man 3" last November, drawing attention.

Below is the full official statement from Lee Dong-yoon

Hello, this is Lee Dong-yoon.

First, I sincerely apologize for causing controversy from early morning because of me.

It is true that I was at that place, but the stories in the articles are not entirely true.

I have thought a lot about where to start explaining, but since these are my mistakes from my reckless childhood 27 years ago, rather than arguing over each detail, I thought it was right to acknowledge those times and sincerely apologize, so I am leaving this statement.

I deeply regret and reflect on those matters again.

I sincerely apologize once again for causing pain to my fans and everyone with such unfortunate stories.

And since this is my personal matter, I sincerely hope that my members, who have worked hard and lived well, will not be harmed because of me.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.