Well this is kinda a shady story but honestly probably something that is quite common place in the entertainment industry. I mean the sponsorship part, not so much the fraud element. Actresses Son Dambi and Jung Ryeo Won, in the same agency, are alleged to have benefitted from the fraud committed by a middle aged businessman pretending to be a wealthy heir. He claimed to have inherited close to $80 million USD and used it to buy cars, homes, yachts, and expensive items. In truth he was a fraud who used that story to bilk close to $10 million USD from rich and powerful people claiming it was an investment in a highly profitable business. He hired Son Dambi’s manager as part of his company and the manager introduced him to Son Dambi. Reportedly they had a relationship and he gifted her expensive presents. Son Dambi also used his money to pay back fellow actress Jung Ryeo Won for a loan of $43K USD she borrowed. She introduced him to Jung Ryeo Won and he bought a car for Jung Ryeo Won, and after Son Dambi found out she broke up with him. The man and his accomplices were arrested this past April and charged with major fraud and other related crimes. Son Dambi and Jung Ryeo Won’s agency has released a statement that neither actress had a relationship with that man, Son Dambi returned all the gifts he gave her which he did as a fan, and he helped Jung Ryeo Won find the car she wanted but she paid for it and it was not a gift. Suuuuuuure……, lol, this one doesn’t pass the sniff test at all.
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Sugardaddy eh. No offense, but I have a hard time believing that above average-looking celebrities at a respectable age are still single. They are either gay, they like playing around or they have some rich oppa or noona looking after them. Most often it is the latter in my opinion. Playing around is more suited for those with little weenies such as Seungri.
I don't know if I believe Son Dam Bi's version of events. How can you one-sidedly receive gifts or money? You either accept them or you don't and she has to have accepted them in the first place to return them. I'm sure there is a Korean equivalent to the expression "there is no such thing as a free lunch" and they have learned the hard way that it's true.
Anne Hathaway's ex-boyfriend who claimed to be from a wealthy Italian royalty and who would accompany her in movie premiers, award shows, turned out to be a fraud/scammer as well, he's now in jail. He was not even hiding when committing those crimes as he was always photographed with Anne. Ugh people can be cray-cray. Pretty sure Dambi is not the first celebrity who accepts extravagant gifts from fans or admirers.
Oops didnt mean for this comment to be a reply to @Sunny, meant to be a separate post, sorry
Yeah but how is Anne Hathaway to blame for that guy's scamming, wasn't she tricked too because he used their relationship to establish a facade of "I'm connected to this celeb so I'm trustworthy"? Unlike in this case, their relationship was public and she didn't deny it.
@Royal We - wasn't saying that Anne was at fault. The example was as a comment to koala's post, i.e. scammer admirers are probably more common than we think in the entertainment industry.
Variety shows showing k-celebs houses have become popular, and sometimes I wonder how some of them are able to maintain a certain lifestyle considering some are rarely in dramas/movies/CF. Maybe for a few, this is the answer.
They said this is the same person who has been exposing Han Ye Seul. But I do wonder why we haven't seen ay expose of male celebrities from his side. Are they all clean, of maybe protected, or this reporter is so biased against females?
I have also wondered the same. Many actors only do one or two dramas a year and they don't get royalties so what they do for income the rest of the year. But someone like Son Dam Bi must have some money from her successful idol days and she is also a regular guest on I Live Alone and some other varieties so I doubt she was unemployed and starving to resort to taking freebies from a scammer. Jung Ryeo Won has had a successful career for years now and is considered one of the most stylish actresses so I'm sure she gets most clothes, make-up, shoes etc comped for free from companies and if she has 43k to loan out then she can't be hurting for money either.
The guy looks so tacky and tryhard just from these pictures I'm surprised they couldn't figure out he was a scammer. Or maybe they just didn't care?
Agree that that YT reporter is obviously biased against woman. I'm sure there are plenty of male celebrities with dirty secrets but he always seems to go after actresses.
Definitely BIASED against women, Him and the whole bunch of SK men who think being Femi is the worst thing ever...
It doesn't matter if anybody is bias towards anyone men or women what matters that these actresses sell themselves for money high class prostitution wich is not something weird in the industry it's a common thing especially for women rather than men because most of the rich and powerful in the world are men that's why women sponsored more especially in South Korea women are used as products like girl groups the way they dance and show of their skin it's disgusting and saddening in the same time that's the way things work in this wretched damned world where humans are used as tools.
@cxa And if it was woman who is exposing just men, would you even get an idea to question if she is sexist and biased against men? Or would it rather be viewed as empowering that women is speaking against men and “that’s right, expose all dirty men” type of mentality? lol
Whatever about this story. Unless they were accomplishing him or it was an actual case of prostitution (only because it’s illegal in SK) it shouldn’t really matter.
That man hates women. Male celebrities are certainly not clean.
I remember Ahn Bo Hyun said in an episode of I Live Alone that an expensive racer bike was gifted to him by the CEO of the company that he models for, because that CEO also loves biking. I don't remember seeing any posts rebuking ABH for accepting the gift. Now if these artists continue to accept gifts even after knowing that the giver has a dubious character, that's when people can raise their eyebrows I think lol
@eleven: That isn't the really the same thing because companies give celebrities free stuff all the time for PR. That was just a smart business move for the CEO to attach his brand to a popular, athletic actor. AHB will post the bike on his IG (or appear on a show like ILA) and give that brand more promo for the price of just a bike and some riding equipment than an expensive ad campaign. The fact that AHB spoke openly about it in ILA even showed the CEO's picture means there was no funny business going on.
This is common in the industry, the sponsor part, not the guy turning out to be a fraud. Male celebrities have sponsors too. If all parties know the score (and one is not a fraud) then I guess I don't really have anything to say about it.
Receiving gifts is not a crime. The guy committed the crime, keep the focus on him. Rich people don't exactly shop at Kohls for gift giving amongst each other. I can't believe the misogynistic comments here. Lets say she did receive gifts as a date, so what? Did she know he was a fraud when he gave those to her? If yes, then drag her....if no, then let her be. Her lifestyle won't affect your life either way.
Trueeee!!!
and now JRW did not attend her wedding. Maybe it’s true that they don’t want to smudge their names to be linked to a girl who got “sponsor”