FTISLAND’s Lee Hong Ki has left a brief response to the ongoing controversy involving his bandmate Choi Jong Hoon.

On March 14, Lee Hong Ki took to his Instagram and posted a photo of his pet, Monggeul. Along with the photo, the FTISLAND vocalist included the hashtags “Monggeul” and “I give up.”

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#몽글이#포기야

A post shared by 홍기 이 (@skullhong12) on Mar 13, 2019 at 9:25pm PDT

Afterwards, fans brought up the controversy about Choi Jong Hoon in the comment section, some of them asking about the meaning behind the second hashtag. One particular comment was written in Japanese, “I beg you. Please don’t give up on Choi Jong Hoon.”

In response, Lee Hong Ki left a short comment in Korean and said, “I give up.”

Following the reports of a chatroom that includes Seungri and Jung Joon Young, where the participants shared illegally taken videos and photos of women, both names of the FTISLAND members came up as possible participants of the chatroom. Afterwards, Lee Hong Ki’s name was cleared by the reporter who released the initial reports, and FNC Entertainment denied Choi Jong Hoon’s involvement in the chatroom.

However, it was later revealed that Choi Hong Joon was a member of the chatroom, in which he allegedly talked about asking personal favors to the police to cover up his drunk driving incident from three years ago.

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As announced previously, Jung Joon Young and Seungri both arrived at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency on March 14 to be investigated for several charges.

Jung Joon Young arrived in the morning to be questioned for the first time regarding charges of filming and circulating illegal hidden camera footage.He commented, “I am sorry. I apologize for causing trouble to all the citizens of the nation. I will diligently participate in the investigation,” and continuously repeated, “I apologize.”

Seungri arrived in the afternoon for his second questioning after first being investigated on February 27 for charges including violating the law on the punishment of prostitution mediation.He remarked, “I once again bow my head in apology to all citizens of the nation and the people who have received harm because of me. Rather than saying more, I will participate in the investigation diligently with truthful responses.”

CEO Yoo of Yuri Holdings, Seungri’s business partner who was involved in the chatroom with suspected prostitution mediation, also arrived at the police station around 12:50 p.m. KST but did not stand in front of media.

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Top photo credit: Xportsnews

On March 14, Min Gap Ryong, the Commissioner General of the Korean National Police Agency, attended a meeting for the National Assembly Public Administration and Security Council. During the meeting, he revealed further plans to investigate the alleged ties between the police and various controversies involving the club Burning Sun.

The Commissioner General stated, “We will guarantee the citizens’ rights to know and secure the investigation’s transparency and fairness. Furthermore, not only will we investigate the suspicions of corruption by the police, but we will also carry out internal inspection and convict those who are confirmed to have committed crimes regardless of rank. In the end, we will announce the final results to the public.”

In addition, the Commissioner General also revealed that they will be hosting a nationwide investigation. He explained, “[We will investigate] not only the clubs in the Gangnam district, but also those of similar organizations across the country. In order to eradicate the source of all absurd acts, we will host an extensive investigation in every direction regarding matters such as drugs, sexual assault, taking and sharing hidden camera videos, and connections to the police.”

Min Gap Ryong continued, “By deploying all capable police officers, we will pull out the root of the anti-social climate that instigates crime and illegal activities in its entirety.”

He concluded, “We will not forget that the police are citizens in uniform, and we will carry out our mission as guardians of safety and human rights. With sincere communication and kind-hearted law enforcement, we will earn trust from the citizens one step at a time.”

The day prior, the Commissioner General acknowledged a possibility of high-ranked police officers from the past abusing their power to protect the celebrities in a chatroom including Seungri and Jung Joon Young.

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