In case ARMYs don't remember, last October, the кσяєαn media reported that Jimin was cheated out of nearly 100 million KRW by a famous comedian. The comedian's identity was later revealed to be Lee Jin Ho, 39, a familiar face on the top entertainment show "Knowing Bros".
Mr. Lee debuted as a special comedian on SBS in 2005 and became famous through appearances on entertainment shows such as JTBC's 'Knowing Brothers' and tvN's 'Comedy Big League'.
Not only Jimin, but many other celebrities were also tricked into borrowing money from Lee Jin Ho and not paying it back, such as actor Lee Soo Geun, singer Ha Sung Woon, singer Young Tak... What is worth mentioning here is that the comedian used the money borrowed from others for illegal gambling.
After the incident was exposed, the actor's celebrity friends were extremely disappointed. Several celebrities have decided to file lawsuits against Lee Jin Ho and request a cut in Lee Jin Ho's performance fees after this incident.
However, the ρσℓι¢є began their investigation after receiving a petition through the National Petition Center requesting an investigation into Mr. Lee's gambling and fraud allegations.
Six months after the investigation, on October 17 this year, the Seoul Gangnam Police recently sent Lee Jin Ho to prosecutors on charges related to illegal gambling. However, no charges were pressed regarding fraud, as the victims of the alleged scam did not provide statements.
The ρσℓι¢є are also continuing to investigate the gambling website that Lee Jin Ho allegedly used. He and others are facing charges of operating illegal gambling establishments.
In a lengthy Instagram post last October, Lee admitted to using illegal online gambling sites since 2020, leading to unmanageable debt. At the time, he said, “I have suffered financial losses, but more than anything, I feel very sorry to those who trusted me and lent me money,” and “I promise to repay all my debts at all costs.”
The source said that the amount of money that Lee Jin Ho borrowed from celebrities and loan sharks was up to 2.3 billion KRW. In addition, hundreds of millions of KRW were borrowed from TV broadcaster executives, producers, screenwriters, and big corporations.
Following these revelations, Lee Jin Ho has now officially faced legal action for illegal gambling. During the investigation, he admitted to most of the gambling-related charges and still expressed his intention to repay his debts.
However, the consequence of this scandal was that Lee Jin Ho had to withdraw from the TV shows he participated in and his career in the entertainment industry was also put on hold.
Meanwhile, Lee Jin Ho and Jimin got to know each other after Jimin participated in 'Knowing Bros' with BTS. In 2022, the comedian approached Jimin and said that he urgently needed to borrow 100 million won with the promise to pay it back within a week.
Despite writing a loan agreement, Lee Jin Ho did not pay back the money afterwards. Realizing that Lee Jin Ho had no intention of paying back the money, Jimin still kindly said, "Please pay me back within 10 years" and helped him.
At that time, Big Hit Music, BTS's management company, shared with Xports News that "It is true that there was financial damage as reported by the media" and explained, "They (Jimin and Lee Jin Ho) signed a loan contract."
