Famous for being a trainer of celebrities, Yang Chi-seung is closing the gym he built with hundreds of millions of won. He has been embroiled in a legal battle over allegations of 'jeonse fraud' amounting to around 500 million won but faced a tragic conclusion with his closure.
Yang Chi-seung opened a gym on the basement first and second floors of a commercial building in Nonhyeon-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, in 2018. He invested hundreds of millions of won in remodeling this space and paid tens of millions of won in monthly rent to pursue his dreams, but according to subsequent reports, this gym had been entangled in complex real estate issues from the start.
The building housing the gym was established under a 'contributed acceptance' condition by real estate development company A, which promised to use it free of charge for 20 years from the Gangnam District Office. The problem is that even though company A had an internal agreement with the Gangnam District Office stating that the management rights of the building would be transferred to the district office after the 20-year free usage period, and that tenants would have to vacate once that period ended, they concealed this from the tenants while signing lease agreements.
This was a large-scale incident connected to the allegation of a '20 billion won' regional housing association fraud, in which more than a dozen merchants, in addition to Yang Chi-seung, were harmed.
Yang Chi-seung faced an unexpected disaster. Having invested 400 million won by taking out a housing loan to open the gym, Yang Chi-seung maintained smooth operations for about a year after opening, but subsequently suffered from the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic for three years and exhausted all his savings.
In a further predicament, after the lease contract expired in November 2021, the Gangnam District Office notified merchants, including Yang Chi-seung, to vacate, claiming it had obtained management rights for the building starting in November 2022. Yang Chi-seung could not hide his embarrassment at receiving eviction orders not from company A, which had leased the property, but from the Gangnam District Office.
The bigger issue was that company A was delaying the return of Yang Chi-seung's security deposit for a year and six months. He acknowledged his negligence in not checking the registration details, but he expressed his grievances, stating, "I thought the company was the owner and signed a lease agreement, but I was unaware of the contract between the company and the district office as it was not explained to me." Yang Chi-seung requested a guarantee of 10 years of operations from the Gangnam District Office, but only received the response from the department director that while they understood the situation, they could not help him. He lamented, "I don't even have money to move out" and shed tears, saying, "I never thought people could deceive others to this extent."
Despite desperate efforts, Yang Chi-seung ultimately had to close the gym. On the 15th, he posted a photo and video on his social media account announcing that the gym would cease operations on July 25, marking a bittersweet farewell.
Amid these struggles, Yang Chi-seung, who had exerted a positive influence by donating funds, faced a situation he could not overcome, having pleaded, "I am enduring and holding on through this COVID; please save me just this once. I really need help." He stated that without receiving his security deposit, he had no way to gather funds if forced to leave; however, he assured his members, "My difficulties are personal, and I will certainly offer refunds. I will find a way to refund you, whether it's by selling my car or otherwise," demonstrating his commitment to responsibility until the end.
Yang Chi-seung, known as 'Trainer Kim Woo-bin,' has faced an unfortunate ending, closing the gym in which he invested hundreds of millions of won due to complex real estate fraud allegations.
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