Former K-pop singer sentenced for sexual harassment

Former K-pop group TopSecret member Lee Kyeong-ha. Korea Times files

By Lee Gyu-lee

A former boy band member has had his conviction confirmed for a sex crime he committed as a minor.

The Seoul High Court backed the suspended 18-month jail term for TopSecret's former member Lee Kyeong-ha, now 21, in a sexual harassment case from 2014, according to a local news outlet Monday. The victim was also 16.

The trial began in April 2017 when the victim filed a complaint against Lee, three months after he debuted in January. The woman first posted allegations on Facebook that in 2014 Lee forced her into a building and pinned her against a wall before kissing, groping and molesting her.

The two came to know each other when they visited a singing room separately. The girl asked for his number and they were on their first date when the alleged unwanted sexual advances took place.

In May last year, the Seoul Western District Court found him guilty, giving him the jail term and ordering him to complete 40 hours of a remedial program for sex offenders

He left the group a month later.

The court cited for its ruling, among other things, online messages that showed the defendant apologizing to the victim and repeatedly promising not to bother her.

Lee was famous for resembling actor Kim Go-eun. The band is still active.