The Burning Sun Scandal: Uncovering Corruption Between Authorities and the Prostitution Industry
In 2019, an assault case at the infamous Burning Sun club in Gangnam, Seoul, sent shockwaves through society. The club, partially owned by the celebrity Seungri, became the epicenter of controversy as investigations revealed that police officers were allegedly protecting the establishment rather than the victim. Suspicions of collusion between law enforcement and the club’s management intensified when media reports uncovered that the lead investigator frequently visited the club. Further, it was discovered that former police officers had helped conceal prostitution arrangements for high-profile clients. This scandal, dubbed “Burning Sun Gate,” laid bare the deep-rooted relationship between police and the entertainment industry, including prostitution, sparking public outcry for systemic reforms.
Types of Adult Entertainment Establishments
So-called “adult entertainment” venues in South Korea are broadly categorized into three types. Among them, establishments classified as Type 1—those that serve alcohol and employ hostesses, such as room salons and cabarets—are notorious for facilitating illegal activities, including prostitution. Under current laws, any sexual engagement between female employees and customers in such venues is illegal.
However, the illegal prostitution industry continues to operate within the gray areas of these laws, remaining a persistent societal problem. Despite efforts to enhance monitoring systems and increase penalties, the cases brought to light are merely the tip of the iceberg. This ineffectiveness is partly due to the close relationship between local police and prostitution businesses. Pimps often bribe police officers, offering cash and other incentives to evade enforcement.
Police and Prostitution: A Pattern of Collusion
Recent media reports have consistently exposed incidents of corrupt ties between the police and the prostitution industry. In February 2020, a police officer known as “A” was acquitted of allegations that he had accepted bribes from a prostitution business owner and leaked investigation details during a major crackdown. Officer A had previously uncovered evidence implicating Lee Kyung-baek, known as the “Emperor of Room Salons” in Gangnam, for bribing police officers to avoid scrutiny. Despite his attempts to expose these dealings in court, his testimony was countered by a colleague, Officer B, who was later revealed to have been complicit in the corruption.
When Officer B’s testimony was discredited, Officer A was cleared of the charges, leading to the arrest of 18 individuals from a list of 66 implicated police officers, known as the “Lee Kyung-baek List.” Investigations revealed that police officers not only received bribes to overlook illegal activities but also actively participated in the financial operations of prostitution establishments, such as lending money for investment purposes and sharing intelligence on crackdowns.
Regional Scandals: The Case of Daegu
In November 2019, workers in Daegu’s “Jagal Madang,” a notorious prostitution hub, alleged collusion between local police and pimps. Following an extensive investigation, the Daegu Provincial Police summoned over 90 individuals on charges of bribery and dereliction of duty. However, despite clear evidence against three incumbent officers, the case was closed six months later, citing a lack of concrete proof. Public criticism of the police’s self-serving investigation mounted, as citizens saw the decision as further evidence of a “protect their own” mentality within law enforcement.
Breaking the Cycle of Corruption
These incidents highlight the entrenched ties between public authorities and prostitution establishments. Eradicating illegal prostitution is nearly impossible without dismantling the corrupt relationships that enable it. Public officials, particularly those tasked with enforcing the law, must act with greater integrity to sever these connections.
To address these issues, stricter disciplinary actions and heavier penalties for public officials involved in bribery and corruption are necessary. Additionally, forming central government-led monitoring groups to oversee police-prostitution relations could be a solution. Investigative teams comprising prosecutors, police, and civilians should be empowered to conduct rigorous investigations and enforce meaningful punishments. On a local level, expanding the “Judicial Police Corps” with retired officers could strengthen crackdowns on illegal entertainment establishments.
Towards Systemic Change
The logic of “where there is demand, there will be supply” can no longer serve as an excuse for inaction. While consumers of prostitution should face strict penalties, the government must also focus on investigating how women are exploited within the industry and how pimps evade law enforcement. Only through such thorough and systemic efforts can we break the ties between public authorities and the prostitution industry, moving closer to a society free of illegal exploitation.
In 2019, an assault case occurred at the famous club “Burning Sun” in Gangnam, Seoul, where famous celebrity Seungri was running with a stake. In the course of the investigation, it was revealed that the police were defending the club rather than the victim, raising suspicions of a collusion between the police and the club’s management. It caused a great social shock when the media reported that the police officer who led the investigation in this case frequently visited the club and that the former police had cooperated in concealing the prostitution arrangement for high-ranking people. Even after the ‘Burning Sun Gate’ incident, the close relationship between the police and the huge entertainment industry, including prostitution, is constantly exposed, raising calls for a surveillance system and a new punishment method to break this “black relationship.”
This so-called “Adult Entertainment” are largely sorted into three types. Among them, the place where illegal entertainment such as sexual advances are mainly performed is the establishment that corresponds to type 1, which sells alcoholic beverages and employs a waitress (helper), and includes establishments such as *room saloons and cabarets”. Under the current legal system, any kind of sexual intercourse between a female employee and a customer in any type of establishment is illegal.
However, the illegal prostitution industry, which straddles the boundaries of these laws, has been regarded as an unresolved problem from the past to the present. Despite the strengthening of the monitoring system that can detect illegal prostitution and the steadily increasing the level of punishment for this, the crackdown cases that have surfaced are just the tip of the iceberg. Despite society-wide efforts to eradicate illegal prostitution, the number of cases actually caught or cracked down is too low. One of the reasons is the close relationship between prostitution pimps and local police. Prostitution pimps offer bribes in various forms, including cash, to local police officers to avoid the regulations.
Such incidents related to the corrupt adhesion between the police and the prostitution industries have been continuously exposed through media reports in recent years. On February 26, 2020, police officer A (49 years old), who was accused of receiving bribes from a prostitution business owner and leaking investigation information during a massive crackdown on prostitution, was acquitted. In the past, police officer A caught the situation in which ‘Kyung-baek Lee’, who is called ‘The Emperor of Room Saloon’ in Seoul, including the Gangnam area, continuously took bribes and trades with police officers to avoid crackdowns. He tried to make a statement in court to let the public know the truth of this case, but the verdict was overturned with the false testimony of his colleague B, who was actually involved in the corrupt relationship with pimps.
However, as all of the testimonies of officer B were found to be false, officer A was able to escape the unjust charge. In the process, a bunch of police officers suspected of collusion with Lee Kyung-baek were caught. The ‘Lee Kyung-baek List’, which was released through the investigation into the situation, included 66 former and current police officers, of which 18 were arrested.
According to the results of the investigation that followed, the job crimes of police officers related to prostitution, including the ‘Lee Kyung-baek case’, occurred not only with the pimps who directly run the establishment, but also in the dealings with the gang that owns the stake in the prostitution establishment. It is known that these covert transactions were mainly done in a way that overlooked illegal activities such as operating an illegal sexual entertainment establishment or arranging prostitution, or receiving bribes and delivering investigation information such as the schedule and location of the crackdown in advance. In addition, the fact that it was done in a more active way of collecting profits after lending money to business owners for investment purposes was revealed, which caused more public criticism of public authorities.
Meanwhile, in November 2019, workers in the so-called ‘Jagal Madang’, known as a gathering place for prostitution in Daegu, argued for a back-scratching alliance between incumbent police officers and pimps. Since the complaint was received in May, the police have conducted extensive investigations, including summoning 90 people for four allegations, including collusion with police officers in charge of the prostitution gathering area and extortion of money in the name of business protection expenses. The Daegu Provincial Police Agency announced that it would send three incumbent police officers with clear criminal circumstances out of 11 current and former police officers who were investigated for these suspicions to the prosecution on charges of bribery and abandonment of duties. But later it reversed its position and closed the case six months later saying that the police officers who are accused had in fact nothing to do with the corrupt relationship with prostitution industries. Citizens criticized the police’s ‘defend around thier own family’ type of investigation. The public believes that The National Police Agency’s claim that “the case was closed because it could not find concrete evidence” is just another evidence of their close relationship, and that it only revealed the intention to protect their ‘family’.
These incidents are just examples of the link between public power and prostitution businesses. Actual crackdown on prostitution is inevitably far away unless the relationship between the prostitution establishments and the public authorities, which evolves cleverly and secretly, is broken. It is almost impossible to cut off illegal prostitution in our society unless public officials, who are supposed to perform their duties with more integrity than other professions, do not cut off dealings with business owners.
Therefore, if a situation of bribery and prostitution by public officials, including the police, is discovered, a heavier punishment and internal disciplinary action should be taken. In addition, as in the case mentioned above, to monitor the relationship between local police officers and prostitutes more closely, organizing a regular monitoring group at the central government level could be a solution. It is necessary to encourage the activities of the investigation team made up of prosecutors, police and citizens, and to ensure that strict investigations and punishments are carried out in this process. In addition, at the local government level, it may be possible to consider expanding the “Judicial Police Corps” composed of retired and former police officers to crack down on illegal entertainment establishments.
Now is the time to break away from the irresponsible logic of ‘Since there are demands, there are supplies’. Of course, those who directly participate in the prostitution industry as consumers should be thoroughly punished. But more importantly, the governmental authority should investigate how women are exploited within the structure of the prostitution industry and how their pimps evade the investigation network in a more active way. This is because only when this meticulous and careful process is preceded, we can break the ties with the public authorities and move one step closer to the true severance of illegal prostitution.
Issued on March 31, 2020.
*It refers to a bar where people can drink in a partitioned room, and in Korea, prostitution with female employees takes place.
**Source: <청렴저널Journal of Integrity> (Transparency International Korea), Eunseo HONG