[Comprehensive] YG, What’s Happening Again? Yang Hyun-suk Indicted Without Detention for Bringing in 700 Million Won Worth of Luxury Watches → Wife Lee Eun-ju Charged for Drunk Driving
Reported by Baek Ji-eun, Sports Chosun — YG Entertainment (YG) is once again facing owner risk.
The Busan District Prosecutors’ Office Public International Crime Investigation Department indicted YG’s executive producer Yang Hyun-suk without detention on charges of violating the Act on Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Crimes (Customs).
Yang Hyun-suk is accused of bringing two luxury watches valued at 828.06 million won into Korea without reporting them to customs at Incheon International Airport in September 2014.
According to Article 241 of the Customs Act, when importing goods from abroad, items such as the product name, specifications, quantity, price, and other matters determined by the Presidential Decree must be reported. Failing to report the goods may result in imprisonment of up to five years or a fine of up to ten times the customs duties or the cost of the goods, whichever is higher. If the cost of imported goods is between 200 million won and less than 500 million won, aggravated punishment applies under the Act on Aggravated Punishment.
YG stated, “We deeply regret the prosecution’s rushed and excessive decision to indict just before the expiration of the 10-year statute of limitations. At the time, in 2017, Yang Hyun-suk sincerely cooperated with the investigation, voluntarily submitting all sponsored watches to the investigation agency, as he wished to avoid any trivial issues as a public figure. During the investigation, the testimony of the company’s representative frequently changed, and the prosecution decided on the indictment without properly investigating the reference participants, declaring that the sponsored items were imported without customs declaration.”
However, a media outlet reported that the watches Yang Hyun-suk brought in were not sponsored items. Instead, before attending a concert scheduled and a luxury brand investment ceremony in Singapore from September 12 to 16, 2014, Yang reportedly messaged the Asian representative B of the luxury watch brand to prepare the requested watches. According to the report, the skull-patterned watch handed to Yang by B was priced at 711.51 million won, and an additional black watch received was 116.55 million won.
Yang Hyun-suk’s suspicions of sexual entertainment for overseas investors were cleared, and he was not indicted for tax evasion; however, he was fined 15 million won for overseas gambling. He is also undergoing trial for allegedly intimidating whistleblower Han Seo-hee to change her testimony to cover up former iKON member B.I’s drug use incident. Adding the tax evasion allegations involving watches has further damaged Yang Hyun-suk’s image.
Yang Hyun-suk’s first trial is scheduled for November 15 at 11 a.m. at the Seoul Western District Court.
Compounding matters, Yang Hyun-suk’s wife, Lee Eun-ju, a former member of the girl group Swi.T, was belatedly confirmed to have been fined for drunk driving. On September 23, 2020, Judge Park Jun-seok of the Jeju District Court’s Criminal Division 3 sentenced Lee Eun-ju to a fine of 12 million won for charges related to dangerous driving causing injury and violating the Road Traffic Act (drunk driving).
According to the ruling, on June 24, at around 11:55 p.m., Lee drove a Carnival vehicle in a state of intoxication from Hanlim-eup to Hangyeong-myeon in Jeju City, approximately 12 km, and collided with a vehicle ahead of her. Her blood alcohol content at the time was 0.120%, a level warranting license revocation. The accident caused injuries requiring two weeks of treatment for the driver and passenger of the affected vehicle.