2 weeks Ago By N/A (Jonathan Hicap)
The police cleared Korean-American singer Jessi (real name Jessica Ho) of charges after she was embroiled in a controversy when a fan who approached and asked to take a photo with her was punched and assaulted by one of her companions in Gangnam, Seoul in September. The Gangnam Police investigated the incident and summoned Jessi for questioning on Oct. 16.
On Nov. 7, after the investigation, the police announced that they decided not to prosecute Jessi after they found that “there is no circumstance that Jessi participated in the assault or threatened, and it cannot be seen that she helped the criminal escape,” Korean media reported. She was earlier accused of harboring and helping the escape of a criminal.
Under Article 151 of Korea’s Criminal Act, “A person who harbors one who has committed a crime punishable by fine or more severe punishment, or who causes such person to escape, shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than three years or by a fine not exceeding five million won.” Singer Jessi (Instagram) The man who hit the fan in the face and assaulted him left South Korea three days after the incident without being questioned by the police. The Korean police issued a wanted notice for the perpetrator and asked the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) for assistance.
On the other hand, the police sent the case for assault against producer Koala, who was seen in the CCTV footage as part of Jessi’s group, to the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office. A female acquaintance who was in Jessi’s group was cleared of charges. The assault, captured on CCTV, happened at about 3:50 a.
m. on Sept. 29 in Apgujeong, Gangnam in Seoul.
The CCTV footage showed Jessi and her companions were on the street when a man approached her and asked to take a photo with her. She refused and Koala stopped him. A man emerged and punched the fan in the face without warning and continued to assault him.
CCTV footage showed Jessi, her companions and the victim in Gangnam, Seoul on Sept. 29 (Screenshots from SBS News and JTBC News videos) Jessi was seen in the video trying to stop the man before he hit the fan. After Jessi and her group left the scene, the police found them without the perpetrator having a drink in a bar.
After the incident was revealed, Jessi issued two apologies. "I sincerely apologize to the victim and his family for the harm caused by this incident. I acknowledge that my actions, attitudes and inaction from the time of the incident until now have led to significant pain and betrayal for the victim and others," she wrote on Instagram, the Korea JoongAng Daily reported.
She added, “I regret it thousands and tens of thousands of times. I wish I could go back to that moment. If I had taken a picture, protected the victim more actively, gone straight to the police, or apologized properly, the victim wouldn’t have suffered this much.
This is all my fault.”.
