Obsessive fan follows Sunny home

Girls’ Generation member Sunny posted a warning message on her Twitter Wednesday, aimed at an obsessive fan shadowing her car as she headed home.

“I’m driving home to eat with my family. There is not much to look for today, so please don’t endanger others’ lives with your reckless driving,” Sunny wrote.

The girl group member was driving alone unaccompanied by her manager around 8 p.m. to her parents’ home. She is said to have been followed by a fan at the time. The tweet was deleted but other fans have expressed concerns over her safety.

The incident underscores the problems touched off by so-called “sasaeng fans” of South Korean pop singers. Sasaeng fan -- a term combining the Korean word “sasaenghwal” (meaning privacy) and fan -- refers to obsessed fans that follow their stars almost around the clock. Some sasaeng fans have been known to reserve expensive taxis to stalk the stars, and the intense chases sometimes leads to traffic accidents.

These fans take actions bordering on actual crime. Earlier last year, members of boy band JYJ shared the story of fans who broke into their homes, photographed their belongings and even attempted to kiss them while they were sleeping. 

By Yoon Ha-youn, Intern reporter (yhayoun@heraldcorp.com)