Police conclude late actress was forced to serve men by her agency

By Kim Eun-jung
SEOUL, July 10 (Yonhap) -- Police concluded Friday that a former talent agency
chief assaulted, threatened and coerced a late actress, who committed suicide
after accusing him of abusing her, to serve men at drinking parties as it turned
the case over to the prosecution.

Identified only by his surname of Kim, the 39-year-old suspect was arrested three
days after being extradited from Japan on Monday. He had been hiding in Japan
since December last year, prolonging his stay while attempting to flee to another
country.
Jang Ja-yeon, 30, hanged herself at her house in Bundang, southern Seoul, on
March 7, leaving a suicide note that accused her former agent of forcing her to
attend drinking parties and to provide sexual favors to high-profile
entertainment figures and journalists.
The case quickly grew into a sensational scandal over who was on "Jang's list"
and prompted financial watchdogs to launch an investigation into contracts
between celebrities and their agencies, long criticized as "enslaving" the
fledgling stars.
"Kim made Jang sign an unfair contract, making her pay 100 million won
(US$78,000), 33 times what she gets in contract money, if she broke the agreed
terms with the talent agency," said Han Poong-hyun, chief of Bundang Police
Station.
"By taking advantage of his superior position to Jang, Kim physically abused and
coerced her to serve at drinking parties, even on the days of the memorial for
her late mother," he said.
According to police, Kim also forced other female entertainers, who were
contracted with his agency, to serve at parties and even on an overseas golf
tour.
Three other men -- an entertainment agent, a drama producer, a businessman-- were
charged with forcing female actresses to serve them, police said.
A recent poll of 2,000 entertainers showed 19 percent of them were approached for
sexual services or knew others who received such propositions.
ejkim@yna.co.kr
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