Park Yu-chun cornered in rape scandal
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Singer Park Yu-chun of JYJ allegedly “coerced” four women to have sex with him. /Courtesy of C-Jes Entertainment
By Lee Jin-a
The four victims of alleged sexual assaults by K-pop star Park Yu-chun say their relations with him were “coerced,” dealing a blow to the singer who says they were done “voluntarily.”
“All four women claimed without exception that Park pushed them into the restroom and sexually assaulted them there,” said investigators at Gangnam Police Station, which is in charge of the high-profile case. “They (victims) said they could not resist because Park was a loyal customer of the bar they were working for.”
Police said some of the victims claimed Park had forced them to kneel on the floor by pushing down on their shoulders.
Park’s agency filed a complaint against the first woman who accused him of rape for blackmail. The agency submitted a voice recording of an alleged gang member, surnamed Hwang, known to be the first victim’s cousin, as evidence.
Police did not reveal details of the audio file, citing the sensitive nature of the case. Instead, Park’s agency disclosed what it claimed was the core part of the recording.
The agency said the first victim’s cousin “verbally threatened” the agency during their meeting, seeking 1 billion won ($866,000) in return for covering up the case. But it did not explain the context in which the “threat” was made.
Meanwhile, police have launched a 12-member special team to ensure a “no-holds-barred” investigation.
“(The case) has gained national attention and, unlike other ones, it is overlapped with (different charges including) sexual assault, accusation and its withdrawal, false accusation and blackmail,” said Kang Sin-myeong, commissioner general of the Korea National Police Agency. “There is a need for a comprehensive and full-scale investigation so as to figure out whether there were other irregularities involved.”
Police have finished questioning the four alleged victims. Park will be summoned this weekend.