Actor Kang Ji Hwan, along with five other actors, has been banned from appearing in any of the KBS programs following the court ruling on sexual assault case. Four actors including an actress are facing a permanent ban whereas two others have been banned temporarily by KBS.
The actors permanently banned from KBS TV programs are 35-year-old Jung Suk Won, 35-year-old Kang Sung Wook, 60-year-old Kim Byung Ok and 26-year-old actress Han Ji Sun. The 43-year-old actor Kang Ji Hwan and 62-year-old TV personality Robert Holly are facing a temporary ban from KBS.
Kang Ji Hwan Sexual Assault Case, Indictment
Actor Kang Ji Hwan who recently appeared in dramas Monster, Children of a lesser god, Feel good to die and Joseon survival period was arrested following sexual assault complaints by two female artistes of his previous agency Huayi Brothers on July 19, 2019. They accused Kang of sexually assaulting them at his house. Kang, who initially had refuted these claims, later admitted to all charges on July 15, 2019. His contract with Huayi Brothers was terminated the next day.
Kang was indicted with the criminal charges of quasi-rape and quasi-indecent acts by force on July 26, 2019. He was found guilty and sentenced to two years and six months imprisonment along with three years of probation by Suwon District Court on December 5, 2019. The media found new evidences of CCTV records from Kang's house and call records of the two employees on August 18, 2020 that led KBS to banning him from shows of the channel. However, the case has been appealed by Kang as well as the prosecution and is pending review by the Supreme Court.
Actors Banned For Drug Abuse
Among actors who have been permanently banned from KBS shows, Jung Suk Won was arrested on charges of illegal drug use in February 2018. The Mr Back, Bad Guys 2 and Kingdom actor was sentenced to 10 months in prison, suspended for two years. Recently, the actor had sought leniency against prosecution's demand of three years probation.
Kang Sung Wook was sentenced to two years six months of jail term in sexual assault case. Actress Han Ji Sun was slapped with a fine for assaulting a taxi driver. Kim Hyung Ok was fined for driving after consuming alcohol.
Robert Holly, who is also known by his Korean name Ha Ji, was arrested on April 10, 2018 on charges of drug abuse. Holly had given up his U.S. citizenship to become a Korean citizen in 1997. He was sentenced to one-year prison sentence, suspended for two years of probation on August 29, 2019.
