Singer-actor Kim Min-jong has withdrawn a criminal complaint against MC MONG, who had singled him out as a member of an "illegal gambling group." Kim decided not to pursue further legal action after MC MONG came in person to apologize and acknowledge the wrongdoing.
On the 10th, attorney Oh Seong-heon of law firm OKIMS, representing Kim Min-jong, said, "We withdrew on the 9th the complaint filed with the Jongno Police Station in Seoul on Sept. 1 against MC MONG for alleged defamation under the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection."
In May, during a TikTok live broadcast, MC MONG claimed there was an illegal gambling group that included celebrities and identified Kim Min-jong as one of them. Kim immediately and strongly denied it and filed a police complaint against MC MONG on the 1st of this month.
About four months after raising the allegations, on the 5th of this month, MC MONG met Kim Min-jong in person and apologized. He was also said to have acknowledged his wrongdoing through a live broadcast afterward.
Kim Min-jong's side accepted MC MONG's apology and decided to withdraw the complaint.
Explaining the background for withdrawing the complaint, Kim Min-jong said, "I thought it was necessary to give another chance to someone who acknowledged the wrongdoing and apologized."
He added, "It is true that over the past four months I suffered wounds and damage that are hard to erase, but I did not want to turn away from the remorse and plea for forgiveness from a junior," and said, "I thought embracing the person was a more meaningful choice than legal action."
Kim Min-jong also conveyed to MC MONG the message, "Let's now support each other and move forward in our respective places."
However, he made it clear that withdrawing the complaint does not change the harm he suffered or his prior position.
Kim Min-jong's side added, "This withdrawal of the complaint does not mean reversing the damage Kim Min-jong has suffered or his existing position," and said, "It is a decision not to continue further legal disputes in consideration of the fact that the other party acknowledged the wrongdoing and apologized."