| /Courtesy of Yonhap News Agency |
By Lee Han-soo
It seems that K-pop boy band Super Junior's member Kangin has a severe problem with alcohol as he yet again was caught drunk-driving on Tuesday. Kangin allegedly fled the scene after hitting a street lamp on Tuesday, although he turned himself into police nine hours later. He had a blood-alcohol level of 0.05 percent, which is a ground for permit cancellation.
“I remember ramming something but didn't know it was a street lamp,” Kangin told police.
Kangin's track record with alcohol are amounting to become a serious problem as this is not the first time he faced charges related to drinking.
On Sep 16, 2009, he was booked without detention for allegedly taking part in a fight with two people in a pub. Although he denied the allegations at the start of the investigation, CCTV footage revealed he had a part in the brawl. He then admitted the charges and apologized.
On Oct 15, 2009, Kangin was involved in a drunk-driving hit-run. He drove his car into two stationary taxies and fled. He turned himself in to police six hours later with a blood-alcohol level of 0.081 percent, which is a ground for permit suspension. He was indicted and paid a fine of 8 million won ($6,700).
Soon after, Kangin enlisted in the army. It seemed the public had forgiven him when he was discharged in 2012 and he tried to make a comeback in the entertainment business.
But this took a blow last year when Kangin was booked without detention for not attending mandatory reserve training for two years.
Kangin's agency, SM Entertainment, said he will stop all TV appearances and have some time of self-reflection.
But some fans want him to drop out of Super Junior and leave show business.
“Enough is enough, some people are never going to change,” a netizen said of Kangin.