Will Super Junior's Kangin be able to resume his career as a member of the boy band?
Kangin has been involved in an alleged assault of his girlfriend, an added issue to his previous driving under the influence that led him not to participate in Super Junior's comeback album released recently.
On November 17, the police received a call that said Kangin assaulted his girlfriend at a bar but the victim opted not to file charges.
"However, the case was resolved as the victim did not wish for legal punishment. It is unclear whether or not the victim was his girlfriend. Kangin has been released from police with a warning," according to media.
Kangin was supposed to be self-reflecting from his DUI case. He and Sungmin did not participate in Super Junior's "Play" album released on November 6 to mark the group's 12th anniversary in the industry.
Siwon, too, did not participate, stemming from the dog biting incident in September, in which his dog Bugsy bit a restaurant owner who died last month of sepsis.
Immediately after the assault incident, Super Junior's Label SJ issued an apology "for causing a case for public criticism."
"During the event, Kangin became involved in an argument with a friend at a gathering with alcohol, which turned into a misunderstanding and led to their summons at the police station. He has apologized to the person involved, and the issue was resolved on the spot. We apologize again for creating a disturbance despite Kangin's hiatus and time of reflection," the label said.
Netizens are demanding SM Entertainment to oust Kangin from the group, saying that he has tainted Super Junior's image.
"Please leave the team on your own. Do you think your fans really want to defend you at all right now? Most of your fans are women, why would they defend you when you beat another woman? Drunk driving, dating violence, those are all crimes," one Korean commented, according to Netizen Buzz.
Another said, "I don't think he'll ever wake up" and "What is SM doing, kick him already. I'm scared kids are going to grow up learning from him. Do something about him in the time you're manufacturing merchandise to sell to fans."