"Said misunderstandings were cleared" Park Narae vs "There was no apology or agreement"... allegations of a false statement, controversy enters a new phase
Broadcaster Park Narae said she "cleared up misunderstandings and distrust" regarding conflicts with her former managers, but the former managers involved have directly denied that, and the controversy has entered a new phase. The positions of both sides are sharply at odds, and there are even suspicions that Park Narae's official statement itself may be a "false statement."
On the 8th, Park Narae announced she would suspend her broadcasting activities after various controversies including allegations of managerial abuse, embezzlement of funds, and illegal medical procedures. In her statement at the time, she said, "With your help I was able to meet with my former managers, and the misunderstandings and distrust were cleared," and "I think all of this is my fault and I am deeply reflecting on it." A representative of her agency was also reported to have said, "We have cleared up the emotional issues between us," suggesting that the complaints, indictments and provisional seizure measures should be withdrawn.
However, according to a Channel A report on the 9th, the claims of the former managers who sued Park Narae were entirely different. The former managers acknowledged that they talked with Park Narae for about three hours in the early morning of the 8th, but said, "There was no apology and no agreement was reached."
They said, "We raised issues for more than a month but when we said we could no longer endure it, Park Narae said, 'Then sue me,'" and added, "We were outraged by the expression 'misunderstandings were cleared' in the statement." They also said, "It felt like a meeting to prepare a statement, and it seemed intended to buy time to change public opinion."
Channel A requested an additional statement from Park Narae's agency regarding these claims by the former managers, but reportedly did not receive a separate response. As a result, suspicions that Park Narae's explanation of a "settling of the conflict" may differ from the facts are gaining traction.
Legal procedures surrounding Park Narae are already underway. Two former managers filed for a provisional seizure of real estate at the Seoul Western District Court, claiming workplace harassment, special injury, proxy prescriptions, and unpaid production fees, and they also filed a complaint alleging embezzlement under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, saying company funds were privately paid to a former boyfriend.
In addition, following a Dispatch report that alleged Park Narae received illegal medical procedures from a person nicknamed "injection aunt," the Gangnam Police Station in Seoul has launched an investigation into possible violations of the Medical Service Act and the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act. Police said they have already received the complaint filed by the former managers alleging special injury and defamation by false statements.
Park Narae's explanation that "misunderstandings and distrust were cleared" and the former managers' rebuttal that "nothing has been resolved" collide head-on, and the controversy has broadened from a personal conflict to an issue of trust. Even though Park Narae announced a suspension of activities, the investigation and legal battles now appear to be entering their early full-scale stages.
With both sides' claims running in parallel, there is a growing view that the fallout from this incident involving Park Narae could become even greater depending on the results of future investigations.
[Photo] 'OSEN DB'
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