Comedian Park Na-rae broke her silence, saying she will no longer make public statements about the mounting additional allegations.
On the 16th, Park Na-rae released a video on the YouTube channel "Baek Eun-young's Golden Time" and offered apologies and her position regarding the allegations. This is the first time Park Na-rae has directly addressed the controversy since announcing a halt to her activities on the 8th, about a week earlier.
In the video, Park Na-rae opened by saying, "I deeply accept that the recent issues have caused worry and fatigue to many people. I voluntarily withdrew from all the programs I was doing because of these matters. I made that choice because I wanted to avoid causing confusion or burden to the producers and colleagues any longer."
She said, "There are aspects of the current issues that require calm verification of the facts, and legal procedures are underway. In that process, I will refrain from making further public remarks or explanations. I believe these matters are not personal emotional or relational issues but problems that should be objectively confirmed through official procedures."
Earlier, Park Na-rae was exposed by former managers for alleged abuse of power, proxy prescriptions, illegal medical procedures and unpaid production fees. The former managers claimed damages suffered at the hands of Park Na-rae and filed a real estate seizure application with the Seoul Western District Court and also warned of a lawsuit seeking about 100 million won in damages. In this process, Anpark Co., Ltd., the company to which Park Na-rae belongs and which was founded by her mother, became embroiled in controversy for operating an unregistered popular culture and arts planning business. In response, Park Na-rae countered that the former managers demanded money after leaving their jobs, and that although the unregistered popular culture and arts planning business was the responsibility of the former manager, they falsely reported that the registration procedures had been completed. She then filed a countersuit against the former managers at the Seoul Yongsan Police Station on charges including extortion.
Meanwhile, the former managers alleged that Park Na-rae falsely listed her ex-boyfriend as a company employee and paid him about 44 million won in salary. They also claimed that she transferred 300 million won of company money to cover the ex-boyfriend's deposit, and they accused Park Na-rae of embezzlement.
In addition, circumstances suggesting that Park Na-rae received illegal medical procedures from a so-called "injection aunt" without a medical license were uncovered, escalating the controversy, and Park Na-rae's side drew a line by calling it a "falsehood." Regarding the "injection aunt" controversy, they also explained that she "simply received a house-call treatment from a person with a medical license." In particular, on the 8th Park Na-rae posted a statement on her personal account saying, "With your help I was able to meet face to face with the former managers and resolve the misunderstandings and distrust between us," but added, "I think it was all my fault and I deeply reflect on it," and announced withdrawal from MBC I Live Alone, Save Me! Homes and tvN Amazing Saturday and a suspension of activities.
Despite Park Na-rae's explanation, the former managers continued to make additional revelations. Contrary to Park Na-rae's claim that misunderstandings were resolved, they said Park Na-rae met them at her home karaoke while intoxicated and appealed to emotion rather than offering apologies or settlements. The former managers filed additional complaints accusing Park Na-rae of special injury and defamation, and further claimed that besides the "injection aunt" there was also an "IV drip aunt." In particular, the IV drip aunt reportedly admitted to the media that she was unlicensed while also saying, "I have no recollection of performing medical procedures on Park Na-rae," adding to the confusion.
As the controversy surrounding Park Na-rae intensified, Park Na-rae, who had kept silent, spoke directly after about a week. However, instead of explaining or defending against the additional revelations, she said she would leave everything to legal procedures. She said, "This choice is not intended to blame someone or assign responsibility but is a decision to exclude emotions and personal judgment and leave matters to the procedures to sort them out."
She continued, "Many stories are circulating right now, but I do not want anyone else to be hurt or for unnecessary disputes to spread. So I will stop all activities for the time being and take time to focus on resolving this matter," and added, "I will reflect on my responsibility and attitude in my position. Issues that require time will calmly be left to the procedures. I thank the many people who cared for me, and to avoid creating further controversy I will not speak about this matter after this video."
[Photo] OSEN DB, Baek Eun-young's Golden Time
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