GOT7's Youngjae sits down with alleged bullying victim

K-pop

Published: 22 Oct. 2020, 17:38 Updated: 22 Oct. 2020, 19:49

GOT7's Youngjae sits down with alleged bullying victim

Youngjae of boy band GOT7 [JYP ENTERTAINMENT]

Boy band GOT7's member Youngjae sat down with the person who accused him of bullying but the alleged victim had no evidence to back up his claims, Youngjae's agency JYP Entertainment said on Thursday.

A netizen who claimed to be a former classmate of Youngjae with an intellectual disability and a hearing impairment wrote online on Tuesday that the K-pop star physically bullied him for two years during high school and stole things from him including money.

He also claimed that he had written the agency emails about the accusations, but JYP said Wednesday that it had not received any emails from the individual.

Thursday's announcement was posted on the GOT7 fan club website, after the two parties met, according to JYP Entertainment.

"Having met the person who wrote the post about Youngjae, he claimed the same things he did through the online post, but could not give any evidence that he was bullied," the agency said.

"We will take firm legal measures against anyone who spreads false and derogatory rumors about an artist within the agency."

JYP Entertainment explained on Wednesday that although the two had a fallout in high school, no one-sided violence or bullying took place.

“We have discussed the matter with Youngjae and he confirmed that there was an incident between him and his classmate that went as far as a physical altercation and they were unable to reconcile after. However, the artist says that the rest of the accusations are not true,” the agency said.

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]