Second woman claims sexual assault by Park Yoo-chun

A second woman has filed a complaint against actor and singer Park Yoo-chun for sexual assault, police said Thursday.

The complaint comes after the woman who previously claimed sexual assault by Park last week withdrew the charge Wednesday morning. Police, however, said the same day that they would investigate the case nonetheless.

The second woman claimed she was assaulted by Park on June 12 in much the same manner as the first woman, inside a bathroom at a Gangnam bar in which she worked, police said.

“He said he couldn’t hear me well and told me to come to the bathroom to talk. I was hesitant on where to draw the line and then he started sexually assaulting me,” the second complainant said in an interview with local media.

When she resisted further, Park grabbed the door handle and blocked her from leaving, the woman said. “I got up the courage to file a complaint after seeing reports of the first woman’s case,” she said.

C-Jes Entertainment, Park’s agency, immediately replied in a statement Thursday, denying allegations of both cases. It added that “if any of the charges are found to be true, Park will retire from the entertainment business.”

“The second case is completely false as well, and we will take legal measures for defamation and libel,” the statement said. “Investigations into the first case are underway and we believe Park will be proven innocent soon.”

“Park Yoo-chun has suffered a huge psychological trauma (from these cases). Please refrain from sensational reporting and await the results of investigation,” C-Jes added.

Timeline of first sexual assault charge

On June 10, a woman in her 20s filed a complaint against Park, a member of K-pop trio JYJ, alleging that he sexually assaulted her in the bathroom of a bar at around 5 a.m. on June 4. The bathroom was inside a room at a bar where Park had been drinking with a group of friends. The woman was an employee of the establishment. 

Local media outlets began reporting the incident Monday night. Wednesday morning, the complainant had dropped the case against Park, according to police, claiming there was “no coercion during sexual intercourse with Park.”

Although she had withdrawn the charge, police said investigations into the case will proceed as it is not necessary for the victim to press charges to open a sexual assault case under Korean law.  

Police are considering questioning those who were with Park at the bar. Police will summon Park for questioning if the testimony solidifies the allegations initially made against him. Police said they will widen the investigation if they also suspect prostitution.

The complainant may also be liable to punishment for making false accusations, police said.

Park’s agency C-Jes Entertainment has so far denied all allegations made against the 30-year-old actor-singer.

“Park has been branded a criminal since the media began reporting the case ... based only on the fact that a complaint had been filed, without taking steps to confirm the truth of the case through police investigation,” the agency said in a statement Wednesday. The agency added it would comply with all police investigations to prove Park’s innocence.

The agency also posted notices in Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese on its website, threatening legal actions against those “expanding or producing materials without a confirmation of fact.”

Local media reported Thursday morning that Park, who is currently carrying out his service as a public agent at the Gangnam-gu Office in Seoul in lieu of military conscription, reported to work Wednesday. He had taken early leave the previous day.

Before entering the compulsory service, Park had filmed the fantasy-thriller flick “Lucid Dream,” which is currently in the end stages of production. The film is tentatively set to open later this year, according to its distribution company NEW. 

By Rumy Doo (doo@heraldcorp.com)