Group DJ DOC's Lee Ha-neul has stated that he will respond to allegations of defamation against him by filing a countersuit.
On the 20th, Lee Ha-neul's agency, Funky Town, released an official statement saying, "Juvi Train and his agency representative, Mr. Lee, while working at Funky Town, have continuously engaged in illegal activities including fraud, embezzlement, and obstruction of business, causing disruptions to the company's operations."
According to police on the 18th, Lee Ha-neul was sent to the prosecution on charges of defamation under the Information and Communications Network Act without detention on the 7th. Lee Ha-neul is accused of spreading false information, claiming that Mr. Lee, the agency representative of singer Juvi Train, with whom he is in a legal dispute, is a criminal.
However, Lee Ha-neul maintains that he is wronged. He stated, "Despite their actions, they abused 'the goodwill of artist Lee Ha-neul' who mediated for a smooth resignation with the company, presenting unacceptable financial resignation conditions to the company, which led to their immediate termination as the company could not accept them. The embittered Mr. Lee and Juvi Train filed a complaint for wrongful termination to the company claiming procedural issues, while fabricating evidence by piecing together various materials, and reported it to the Ministry of Employment and Labor for workplace bullying."
He continued, "Unfortunately, during the review of the wrongful dismissal remedy, the unfairness of their actions was not considered at all, and only procedural flaws were acknowledged. As a result, the application for wrongful dismissal remedy was recognized, but fortunately, we secured original and counter-evidence, which proved that all the evidence submitted by them was fabricated, leading to the rejection of their claims regarding workplace bullying."
Lee Ha-neul's side noted, "Among the behaviors of those who resort to any means to fabricate evidence for their own interests, the most unforgivable part is that they continue to defame and attack artist Lee Ha-neul, who tried to protect them until the end." He added, "When the issue with the company is publicized, fearing that their illegal activities will be revealed, these individuals have since immediately after resigning targeted artist Lee Ha-neul, persistently engaging in psychological and social bullying through excessive lawsuits."
He stated, "Artist Lee Ha-neul has actively clarified their behavior through live broadcasts as a public figure, but they have continued to selectively quote and distort some statements, proceeding with lawsuits in a 'one out of many' manner." He continued, "Currently, artist Lee Ha-neul has received a total of four lawsuits filed by them from different investigative agencies; among them, the case alleging that artist Lee Ha-neul defamed Juvi Train has been dismissed without charges, but is currently under re-investigation due to an objection from the opposing party."
Additionally, Lee Ha-neul's side stated, "Funky Town has currently filed criminal complaints against Juvi Train and his agency representative, Mr. Lee, for fraud, embezzlement, destruction of electronic records, obstruction of business, and obstruction of business by fraud, and additional complaints for defamation and threats are planned." They emphasized, "We believe this matter is not a simple conflict, but an act with the intent to long-term and habitually tarnish the artist's reputation. Funky Town will not hesitate to take all legal actions to protect the rights of our artists and will respond firmly to baseless slander and false claims in the future."
Meanwhile, Lee Ha-neul and Juvi Train have been in a battle of truth since June of last year over allegations of wrongful termination and drug use. At that time, Mr. Lee, the representative of Juvi Train's agency, Base Camp Studio, stated that he had filed a lawsuit against Lee Ha-neul for defamation due to the spread of false information, claiming that he had fabricated allegations of habitual drug use to cause Lee Ha-neul's wrongful termination from Funky Town.
In response, Lee Ha-neul's agency, Funky Town, rebutted, "Juvi Train and Mr. Lee were terminated for several reasons, including a lack of sincere work attitude at Funky Town." They added, "We have filed a criminal complaint against the two workers at the Mapo Police Station for fraud, embezzlement, destruction of electronic records, obstruction of business, and obstruction of business by fraud, and an investigation is currently underway. Additionally, further issues have been found, and we are conducting legal reviews, and we will take legal actions as soon as they are confirmed."
[Photo] OSEN DB
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