Police Involved In Initial Burning Sun Assault Case Cleared Of Charges + Kim Sang Kyo Forwarded To Prosecution

On May 15, the Metropolitan/Provincial Special Detective Division of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced results regarding the initial assault case at Burning Sun in November 2018.

Kim Sang Kyo previously said in January that he was helping a woman who was being sexually harassed when he got attacked by security guards at the club, but he was arrested as the assailant and was further assaulted by the police at the police station. At the time, a source from the club stated that Kim Sang Kyo was charged for sexual harassment, while the police stated that he was arrested for interference with business.

The police has decided to forward Kim Sang Kyo to the prosecution with the recommendation for indictment on charges of assault, interference with business, and the violation on the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment, etc. of Sexual Crimes.

Based on their investigations of Kim Sang Kyo’s behavior patterns at the time, victim testimonies, and analysis of CCTV footage, the police will forward Kim Sang Kyo to the prosecution for sexual harassment of three women with the recommendation of indictment and for one woman with the recommendation of non-indictment.

The club’s sales director Jang and security guard manager Jang will be forwarded to the prosecution with recommendation of indictment on charges of violating the Punishment of Violences, etc. Act for the joint assault of Kim Sang Kyo. Choi, the individual who first got in a fight with Kim Sang Kyo, will also be forward to the prosecution with recommendation of indictment on the charge of assault.

Regarding the suspicion of collusion between Burning Sun and the Yeoksam Patrol Division of the Seoul Gangnam Police Station, the police concluded that it did not occur. The police judged that there is no evidence of collusion after analyzing 72 cell phones and 18 shared cell phones of 71 police officers of Yeoksam Patrol Division including the four who were present on site for the incident, the call histories of 706 Burning Sun staff members, and the bank account records of 36 major staff members and police officers.

In January, Kim Sang Kyo filed a lawsuit for the destruction of evidence from the police station’s CCTV and the police car’s black box. This case will be forwarded to the prosecution with recommendation of non-indictment as the police concluded that there is no evidence of editing or manipulation based on analysis by the National Forensic Service and comparison with the police’s body cam footage.

On the suspicions of the Yeoksam Patrol Division police officers assaulting Kim Sang Kyo, the police commented, “Based on video analysis and lie detector tests of the four police officers in question, they will not be booked as it is difficult to confirm the charges of assault, so the internal investigation will come to a close.”

However, the police did confirm that there were problems in the procedure of arresting Kim Sang Kyo including the Miranda warning being notified after his arrest, and there were improper actions taken while transporting him. The police officers involved will be reported to the Office of Inspection & Public Complaints.

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