Kim Ho-joong’s agency fires CEO and employees in connection with alcohol-related incident

Singer Kim Ho-joong’s agency announced that it will replace its CEO, executives and anyone linked to the singer’s drunken driving incident. The announcement came amid growing backlash against Kim, who was arrested for hitting a stopped taxi while drunk and fleeing the scene of the accident.

“We have decided that all employees associated with the incident will leave the company,” Kim’s agency Think Entertainment said in a press release on Monday. It is the agency’s fifth apology since the accident.

“We apologize again for disappointing many people with Kim’s incident,” the agency said. It also apologized to the artists who are under contract with it. “The opinion of our artists is of the utmost priority and all contracts will be terminated without further conditions for artists who wish to leave.”

The company will review its entire business and decide whether it will continue to manage additional artists, the press release said.

“We apologize to everyone who has suffered because of the company and Kim,” Think Entertainment said.

Kim was charged with driving into a stopped taxi while under the influence of alcohol in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, on May 9 and driving away. His manager tried to take the blame for the accident, but the singer turned himself in 17 hours after the incident. Kim also admitted to driving while intoxicated on May 19, after initially denying the drunken driving charges for 10 days.

Singer Kim Ho-joong at an arrest warrant review hearing last Friday around noon. (JOONGANG ILBO)

A local court issued an arrest warrant last Friday for Kim, his agency’s CEO Lee Kwang-deuk, and the agency’s headquarters director surnamed Jeon, following a police request on Thursday. The three were arrested and detained at Gangnam Police Station.

The trio is currently under investigation. The investigation will last a maximum of ten days, i.e. until June 3. After that, the case will be handed over to the public prosecutor’s office, after which the trio will be transferred to the Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang, Gyeonggi.

Due to his arrest, Kim did not appear for the second date of his concert “World Union Orchestra Super Classic: Kim Ho-joong and Prima-donna,” which was scheduled to take place last Friday at 8 p.m.

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG ([email protected])