Big Bang's Seung-ri in military uniform denies allegations of prostitution and habitual gambling.

 Seung-ri (real name Lee Seung-hyun, 30), a former member of the group Big Bang, who was indicted on charges of arranging prostitution with foreign investors and making overseas gambling worth 2 million dollars to attract investment, denied most of the charges in his first trial.

 

In the first hearing of the case, which was held at the General Military Court of the Ground Operations Command in Yong-in, Gyeong-gi Province on the 16th, Seung-ri said, "We deny all charges except for the violation of the Foreign Exchange Transaction Act.“

Seung-ri was charged with arranging prostitution several times between December 2015 and January the following year to investors in Taiwan, Japan and Hong Kong to attract investment for clubs and financial investment. He is also accused of buying sex by himself (violation of the law on the punishment of sex traffic, etc.) at a similar time.

He was also indicted on charges of embezzling some 0.5 million dollars in the name of brand fees for the "Monkey Museum," a bar in Gangnam, Seoul, and misappropriating 22,000 dollars from Yuri Holdings' company in the name of its employees' private lawyer fees.

In addition, he allegedly gambled several times between December 2013 and August 2017 at hotels and casinos in Las Vegas, using 2.2 millions dollars, and did not make any report in the process of lending chips worth 1 million dollars in gambling funds.

Seung-ri has admitted to the charges of violating the Foreign Exchange Transaction Act.

Seung-ri, who is serving as a private in the 5th Artillery Brigade under the 5th Army Corps, entered the court wearing military uniforms and short sports hair five minutes before the trial began.

Seung-ri sat upright throughout the trial and clearly expressed his opinion to the court's questions.

Seung-ri was previously expected to be indicted with Yoo and tried at the Seoul Central District Court, but the case was transfered to a military court when he joined the military in March this year.

The military initially allocated the case to the 5th Corps General Military Court, but again to the General Military Court of the Ground Operations Command, a higher-level unit, for a closer hearing.

The date for the next trial will be set later.