On Monday, South Korean comedian Lee Jin Ho shocked the K-pop community by disclosing on social media that he’s the subject of an illegal online gambling investigation being conducted by law enforcement and that he funded his gambling addiction by scamming his celebrity friends.
In an Instagram post, Lee told his 133K followers and fans that he began gambling in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
During lockdowns, the comedian said he came across an online gambling site that lured him into registering and playing. Online casino gambling is illegal in South Korea. Lee conceded that his play became irresponsible, and he began racking up debts he couldn’t repay.
He turned to his closest friends, many of whom were celebrities, for loans. Park Ji Min, better known as Jimin, a member of the global K-pop boy band BTS, loaned Lee 100 million KRW (US$73,300) in 2022. Jimin’s management group, Big Hit Music, said publicly this week that the loan was never repaid.
“Jimin indeed suffered financial harm. He trusted Lee Jin Ho and lent him the money with a promissory note,” the statement read.
“Scammers don’t spare even celebrities,” the Big Hit release continued. He didn’t repay despite the written agreement. This is unacceptable.”
Insurmountable Debt
Media reports out of South Korea suggest Jimin wasn’t the only celebrity scammed by Lee Jin Ho. Yonhap News and Ten Asia each reported that Lee’s other victims include singer Young Tak and comedian Lee Su Geun. They’re said to have loaned Lee “hundreds of millions of won.”
In his social media post, Lee pledged to make his victims whole.
“I came across an illegal gambling website in 2020 and it ended up causing me severe financial hardship,” Lee wrote. “I was able to quit gambling thanks to advice from my acquaintances and the realization that I might have to give up the career I love.”
I’ve been diligently repaying my debts every month and plan to continue doing so until the day I die,” Lee continued. “The financial loss is painful, but what hurts more is betraying those who lent me money. I will also cooperate fully with any police investigations and accept the consequences of my actions.”
Repaying his debts is presumably getting harder, as Lee’s disclosing his gambling problem has already cost him work.
In the wake of the news, Netflix announced that Lee would be edited out “as much of his previously filmed content as possible” from the streaming service’s popular show “Knowing Bros.” The talk show/variety series is among the most popular shows on Netflix in South Korea, with the program running since 2015 and consisting of more than 400 episodes.
Lee has been a regular cast member for the last 100 episodes. He’s nicknamed “WikiJinho” on the series for his seemingly never-ending knowledge on an array of topics.
Korean Gambling
The only place where citizens and residents of South Korea can gamble legally, aside from the state-run lottery, is Kangwon Land roughly 100 air miles east of Seoul. Korea’s other casinos are strictly reserved for foreigners.
The South Korean government also prohibits online gambling for both residents and foreigners. The government recently upped penalties for those who run an illegal gambling operation to up to seven years in prison and a 70 million won fine.
People who participate in illegal gambling, regardless of whether online or in person, face fines of up to 20 million won. Repeat offenders face prison time of up to three years.
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