▲ Hwang Seong-woo, chief of Omega X's former agency, Spire Entertainment, speaks during a press conference, insisting that the boy group's member Hwichan sexually harassed his female predecessor, surnamed Kang. The photo was taken in Seoul on March 19, 2024. (Yonhap)

 

SEOUL March 19 (Yonhap) -- Spire Entertainment, the former agency embroiled in conflict with the group Omega X, claimed on the 19th that their former CEO Kang Mo was sexually assaulted by member Whee Chan, backing their assertion with CCTV footage.

Hwang Sung-woo, CEO of Spire Entertainment, held a press conference in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the same day, stating, "During a moment of comforting Whee Chan, who was distressed ahead of his enlistment, Kang, the former CEO, was suddenly forcibly sexually assaulted by Whee Chan." Hwang and Kang are married.

Hwang stated, "Although Kang tried to push Whee Chan away and make him sit down, Whee Chan persisted in forcibly making physical contact." He continued, "Despite Kang's resistance, Whee Chan continued to sexually assault him, pushing Kang down with force."

Spire released CCTV footage they claim contains evidence of the incident, though the footage lacks audio. Spire explained that the footage had recently been recovered through forensic analysis.

Hwang said, "After this incident, there was a proposal during an executive meeting to report the member to the police and expel him, but for the future of the 11 members of Omega X, Kang agreed to wait until the end of the tour and his enlistment to naturally halt his activities."

Spire hesitated to press charges and make the incident public to avoid branding the young member as a sex offender, but they claimed that Omega X members counter-sued Kang, alleging sexual assault.

Former CEO Kang was sued by the prosecution this month on charges of assaulting another member during their stay in Los Angeles in October 2022. Hwang rebutted, saying, "The prosecution requested further investigation afterward. Therefore, it has not been determined whether the assault took place."

Hwang announced after the press conference that they plan to press charges against the member (Whee Chan) for sexual assault.

Omega X members claimed they were verbally and physically abused by Spire Entertainment officials in 2022 and moved to a new agency, IPQ, but Spire claims there was tampering (pre-contact before the contract ended) involved in this process, leading to ongoing conflict between the parties.

 

(END)

 

[ⓒ K-VIBE. 무단전재-재배포 금지]