A former employee of the South Korean government has reportedly been indicted for attempted to sell a lost hat belonging to BTS‘ Jungkook.
According to a Yonhap report published by The Korea Herald earlier today (February 7), prosecutors have summarily indicted the former foreign ministry employee, whose identity has been withheld from the public, for allegedly attempting to sell the idol’s lost hat online for approximately KRW10million (£6,600).
Citing legal sources, the outlet reported that the former employee allegedly uploaded a photo of Jungkook’s bucket hat on an online flea market and claimed that he had left it behind at the ministry’s headquarters in Seoul when the idol visited to apply for a passport.
The seller also reportedly wrote in the listing that they claimed ownership of the hat after it was reported as lost property following six months without anyone coming forward to claim it. Following online backlash, the seller deleted the listing and handed themselves over to the police.
According to The Korea Herald, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office is seeking a fine as a punishment for embezzlement charges. According to the outlet, BTS’ label HYBE confirmed to the police that the hat belonged to Jungkook, though neither the label nor the idol have made any public statements on the indictment. The prosecution also reportedly plans to return the hat to Jungkook.
In other Jungkook news, the BTS member recently logged over 100million streams on Spotify with his solo single ‘Dreamers’ in December 2022, only 35 days after its release. The track became the fastest song by a South Korean soloist to achieve the milestone. ‘Dreamers’ was initially released in November 2022 for the 2022 FIFA World Cup’s original soundtrack.
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