Suga Apologizes For Drunk Electric Scooter Incident, Fans Ask Him To Leave BTS

A member of K-pop mega group BTS arrived at a South Korean police station on August 23 for questioning, telling reporters he was “really sorry” for riding an electric scooter while drunk.

Suga, 31, was found by police lying on the ground next to his electric scooter late on the night of August 6, with a blood alcohol level well above the legal limit.

Dressed in a black suit, he bowed to reporters outside the police station in Seoul’s trendy Yongsan district.

“I’m sorry, I’m really sorry. I sincerely reflect on the fact that I have caused disappointment to many fans and many people. I will fully cooperate with the investigation. I’m sorry again,” he said before entering the station.

The rapper, whose real name is Min Yoon-gi, did not respond to reporters’ questions about the details of the case.

Suga, who is currently performing mandatory military duty as a social service worker, has already had his driver’s license revoked and was fined.

But he has yet to answer questions from police, as officers said he was too drunk to respond at the time of the incident.

He admitted to driving drunk and apologized to his fans on social media.

Experts told AFP the punishment would depend on the type of electric scooter Suga was riding.

If he were riding a fancy electric scooter rather than a simple skateboard, Suga “could be punished for violating traffic laws,” lawyer Cha Hong-soon said.

Police said Suga’s blood alcohol level was 0.227 percent, nearly three times the legal limit. That could land him in prison for up to five years or a fine of 10 million to 20 million won under South Korean traffic laws.

But police will also consider “factors such as how far the driver has driven, whether any damage occurred and whether he or she had a similar criminal record,” Cha added.

Seoul’s Military Personnel Administration said Suga would be punished according to traffic laws, not military law, because the incident occurred outside of his official working hours.

BTS fans – collectively known as the Army – are divided over the controversy, with some rallying behind the singer and others calling for him to leave the group.

“I liked BTS because of Yoon-gi and now I can’t stop crying,” said BTS fan Park Soo-hee. “People say you should never like an idol who appears in police reports or the 9 p.m. news and I’m really disappointed in him.”

The seven members of the world’s most popular boy band have been on “hiatus” since 2022 due to military service, which South Korea requires of all men under 30 due to tensions with the nuclear-armed North. – AFP