Police said Monday that they have not ruled out drug use allegations concerning G-Dragon, despite lifting travel restrictions on the K-pop icon after a detailed narcotics analysis of his biological samples came back negative. An official of the National Police Agency said in a regular press briefing that the officials are "open to possibilities until the investigation reaches its conclusion" on the G-Dragon probe. "If the circumstances clearly point to drug use, it wouldn't b

Social Affairs Nov. 27, 2023

An anonymous online post about an allegedly misogynistic hiring process at a company is sparking a furor here, where gender-related issues have repeatedly sparked controversy. The anonymous writer, who posted it on Sunday, claimed to be part of the hiring process at their company, and that their policy is to eliminate all applicants who graduated from women's universities. "It's not like we exclude all women but if (the applicant) is from a women's college, we don't even

Social Affairs Nov. 27, 2023

A man in his 50s fell off a cliff on Jeju Island while trying to photograph himself at a popular tourist spot, local police said Monday, in what seems to be an attempt to grab an "insaeng shot," or photo of life. According to the Seogwipo Coast Guard, the unidentified man was visiting the Oedolgae Sea Stack, a famously photogenic location along the southern coast of the island. During an attempt to shoot a picture of himself at a nearby cliff, he tumbled and sustained a head injury as

Social Affairs Nov. 27, 2023

A sex tape scandal involving South Korean striker Hwang Ui-jo has brought to light the issue of "molka," hidden cameras used to take pictures or videos for sexual purposes. A recent report showed that the crime happened at an average rate of 17 times per day over the past five years. A total of 3,111 crimes involving video recording without consent were reported in the first half of the year, according to the quarterly report on crime trends published Sunday by the Korea Institute o

Social Affairs Nov. 27, 2023

Despite not being the most populous country in Asia, South Korea has won more fencing medals than any other state in Asian Games history, winning 134 to edge out China by two as of 2023. At the root of such success are efforts to aid growth of young prospects in the sport, such as Suwon Fencing Federation’s Korea Club Championship - Fencing that took place at Aju University in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, on Nov. 11-12. The event was attended by some 100 athletes from elementary, middle and h

More Sports Nov. 24, 2023

A 70-something man was killed Friday by a stone thrown by an elementary school student, touching off a dispute across the country over the South Korean legal clause that bans punishing those under the age of 14. According to Nowon Police Station in Seoul, the victim was walking in an apartment complex with his wife around 4:30 p.m. when a stone thrown from about 10 stories above struck him. Rescue workers were dispatched to the scene, but the victim died on the spot. A subsequent police investig

Social Affairs Nov. 20, 2023

LG group on Friday has kicked off promotional discounts across its affiliated companies in commemoration of its professional baseball team winning its first championship in 29 years, cutting the price in various forms related to the magic number 29. LG Twins, an affiliate of the LG Group, won Game 5 of the Korean Series against KT Wiz on Monday to clinch its first title since 1994. LG Electronics, the flagship corporation of the group, will be giving 29 percent discounts starting 10 a.m., next T

Industry Nov. 17, 2023

A recent media report showed that local police did not arrest an 80-something man suspected of rape and left him unsupervised, citing that he was very old and is not a flight risk. The suspect, whose identity was withheld by authorities, is accused of attacking a woman in her 80s at her apartment in Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province, on June 2. The victim's son saw the attack and overpowered the suspect, turning him over to police who were called to the scene. Despite apprehending the susp

Social Affairs Nov. 17, 2023

A local department store's event to celebrate Christmas through its digital billboard has gone horribly wrong, as it ended up with an anonymous threat to "rape all Korean women" being flashed on the digital screen in central Seoul. According to local police, the message saying "I'm going to rape all Korean women" appeared around 10 p.m. Tuesday on a giant screen on the exterior of Lotte Department Store in Myeong-dong, Seoul. The department store had been holding a

Social Affairs Nov. 17, 2023

In the winter of 2005, South Korea experienced a roller coaster of emotion, looping between shock, disbelief and relief multiple times after Hwang Woo-suk, then the country’s most revered scientist as well as a symbol of national pride and hope for the terminally ill, faced whistleblower accusations for grave ethics breaches, followed by even graver matters of data fabrication. After a whirlwind of claims and counterclaims that left many at a loss as to what to believe, by December of that

Hashtag Korea Nov. 15, 2023

Last week, former YG Entertainment chief Yang Hyun-suk was hit with a suspended jail term for his alleged attempt to cover up a 2016 drug scandal involving one of his artists. It came as the latest in a series of drug-related issues that have recently plagued South Korea's entertainment scene. Police are currently conducting drug crime investigations into two top stars, “Parasite” actor Lee Sun-kyun and K-pop superstar G-Dragon, the latter of which previously had a brush with

Social Affairs Nov. 13, 2023

A police commendation process following the arrest of escaped criminal Kim Gil-soo has stirred up controversy, after it was discovered that two of the police officers who caught the fugitive were not properly awarded or recognized for their contributions. The National Police Agency on Tuesday granted special promotions to Sgt. Lee Seon-ju of Uijeongbu Police Station and Senior Officer Kim Min-gok of Anyang Dongan Police Station for their role in Kim’s arrest the day before. Lee had closely

Social Affairs Nov. 10, 2023

The bizarre saga surrounding former fencing champion Nam Hyun-hee’s brief engagement to a con artist is sizing up to be a collective loss, ranging from money lost to fraudulent investments to public shaming of the former sports star. But from the ashes of Nam’s obliterated reputation came an internet meme based on one of her former fiance’s text messages mixing English and Korean. In the message to a potential extortion target, Jeon Cheong-jo -- whom police reported has a woman

Social Affairs Nov. 3, 2023

A man in his 60s has been sentenced to four years in prison for the murder of his terminally-ill wife, after taking care of her for over five years. According to the Seoul Central District Court, the mad was accused of killing the victim in April 2022. The victim was diagnosed with stage four cancer in 2017, and was also suffering from dementia, Parkinson's disease and epilepsy. After his wife's condition deteriorated and following a failed suicide attempt of his own, the accused r

Social Affairs Nov. 3, 2023

Find the answer at the bottom of the page. Ryu Hyun-jin just wrapped up the last season of his four-year, $80 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays, and is now slated for free agency that will realistically be the 36-year-old pitcher's last chance to make big money in Major League Baseball. Widely considered the best Korean pitcher of all time, Ryu has already made just a tad under $133.9 million in his 11-year stint in the MLB, which started in 2013 with the Los Angeles Dodgers

Hashtag Korea Nov. 1, 2023