SM Entertainment has shared that RIIZE‘s Seunghan will indefinitely suspend his activities.
In addition, SM Entertainment announced they will be taking strong legal action against the sharer(s) of the malicious content being spread through editing.
안녕하세요. SM엔터테인먼트입니다. pic.twitter.com/Cwn4ig8o1g
— RIIZE (@RIIZE_official) November 22, 2023
Hello, this is SM Entertainment. We would like to inform you regarding RIIZE’s Seunghan.
Seunghan is reflecting on the disappointment and confusion he has caused, in relation to his private matters that were recently leaked and distributed through online channels. He apologizes to not only the group and his group members but also the fans.
Seunghan has been feeling responsible for what has happened, as well as mental burden. After serious consideration, he has expressed his desire to halt all activities for the sake of the group.
We have also decided that it was unreasonable for him to continue his activities under these circumstances. And so Seunghan’s activities will be indefinitely suspended with respect to his opinion that he did not want to cause any more damage to the team and the members.
Starting today (November 22), RIIZE will be active as six members, excluding Seunghan.
We understand that this is a sudden change, but it was decided after careful discussion with the artist himself. Hence, we ask for your kind understanding. We, too, feel a great sense of responsibility for the neglect on our part in terms of artist management, even if the issue at hand had occurred before debut. Once again, we sincerely apologize to the fans.
The photos and videos that are being leaked and distributed without permission are from private moments pre-debut, when Seunghan was a trainee. They were edited several times to intentionally cause misunderstandings.
In addition, the individual who leaked and distributed the videos and photos in question has committed serious defamation against the artist by spreading fabricated and false information that is different from the truth. They have used non-existent messenger conversations and other malicious methods to create and spread groundless information.
As soon as we became aware of this, we began gathering information and monitoring the situation to collect evidence and identify the source of the unauthorized leaks. We plan to file a report with the police this afternoon.
In addition, we are considering additional legal measures against the specific individuals for matters such as defamation of our artists through the unauthorized leak and dissemination of the the content and other illegal acts such as cyber-bullying and blackmailing.
We will not tolerate any secondary acts of harm, such as creating, spreading, and reproducing rumors related to our artists through additional posts. For the sake of the artists and the fans who love them, we will practice no leniency.
We will continue to do our best to protect our artists. Thank you.
— SM Entertainment
Seunghan was accused of disrespecting LE SSERAFIM‘s Eunchae in a private livestream—though soon debunked. Shortly after, though, a video of him allegedly smoking went viral, and some of his alleged text messages soon also appeared on the internet.
New Text Conversation Between RIIZE’s Seunghan And His Friend Gets Leaked Amidst Scandals
