K-pop Singer Jessi Was Questioned By Police Amid Assault Investigation — What Happened?
"I regret it thousands and tens of thousands of times," she wrote.
Published Oct. 24 2024, 10:38 a.m. ET
South Korean rapper and singer Jessi is best known for being a member of the hip-hop groups Uptown and Lucky J before going solo in 2017.
Since then, Jessi (real name: Jessica Ho) has released several songs including "Drip" and a mini album titled "Nuna."
However, Jessi is making headlines for something not related to her music. On October 16, Jessi was questioned by police amid an assault investigation, so what happened?
K-pop singer Jessi was questioned by police after a member of her entourage allegedly assaulted a fan.
According to Asia One, Jessi was spotted at a police station in Gangnam after CCTV footage showed an alleged member of her entourage assaulting a fan.
However, Jessi denied that the perpetrator was a member of her entourage.
"I hope they find the perpetrator soon, I hope he gets punished. I will tell the police everything I know as it happened," she told the press per the outlet. "That day was the first time I met the assailant."
The alleged victim is said to be 18 years old. It was reported that the victim approached Jessi as she was walking to a convenience store in Apgujeong and asked for a photo.
That is when a man in Jessi's group can be seen punching and kicking the victim. Jessi moves away from the altercation while another woman steps in to separate the man from the fan.
Jessi also addressed the assault on Instagram, and explained why she didn't intervene.
In a lengthy post shared on her Instagram on October 23, Jessi also shared her side of the story and apologized to the victim.
"I sincerely apologize to the victim and his family for the harm caused by this incident," she wrote. "I acknowledge that my actions, attitudes, and inaction from the time of the incident until now have led to significant pain and betrayal for the victim and others."
She continued, "I regret it thousands and tens of thousands of times. I wish I could go back to that moment," she wrote. "If I had taken a picture, protected the victim more actively, gone straight to the police, or apologized properly, the victim wouldn’t have suffered this much."
Her fans flooded her comment section with support. "Why r Koreans always blaming or hating on innocent K-pop idols...," one follower commented before another added, "Can we let idols live?? None of this was her fault."
A third chimed in, "I'm going to keep coming back here every day to remind you how much so many of us love you. You're a great artist and a genuine person and an inspiration to a sea of people. We love you Jessi!"
Amid this news, it was also reported that Jessi was dropped by her agency DOD Entertainment, a decision that Jessi made one month after signing with them.
"At Jessi's request, it has been decided that our exclusive contract with her will be terminated as of Oct 18, 2024," DOD said in a statement. "Although it was a short time, we would like to express our gratitude to Jessi for being with us and we sincerely support her future activities."
