K-pop Singer Moon Taeli Sentenced to 3.5 Years in Prison for R@ping Chinese Tourist

K-pop singer Moon Taeli has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison by a South Korean court for his involvement in the r@pe of a Chinese tourist. The verdict was handed down by District Judge Lee Hyun-kyung in Seoul, who described the case as “severe” due to the deliberate nature of the crime.

According to reports from the New York Post and BBC, Moon Taeli and two other men met the victim at a bar in Itaewon, a district in Seoul known for its vibrant nightlife. The woman became heavily intoxicated after drinking with them. The group then took a taxi to one of the men’s residences, where the assault occurred. The court found that Taeli intentionally moved the victim to a different location to impair her ability to recall the events clearly, increasing the severity of the crime.

Under South Korean law, the offense is classified as both “aggravated rape,” due to it involving multiple perpetrators, and “quasi rape,” because the victim was unconscious at the time of the attack.

In addition to the prison sentence, the court also ordered all three men to complete 40 hours of a treatment program for sexual violence offenders.

Taeli, who is 31 years old, left the K-pop group NCT in August 2024 when the allegations first emerged. His agency, SM Entertainment, subsequently terminated his contract.