In a shocking incident reported by Biz Hankook on March 22 KST, BTS member Jungkook became a victim of identity theft while serving his mandatory military duty.
The crime took place on January 6, 2024, shortly after his enlistment, when an unidentified perpetrator took advantage of his absence to illegally seize his HYBE stock holdings.
The perpetrator opened three securities accounts under Jungkook’s name and unlawfully transferred 33,500 shares of HYBE Labels stock, valued at approximately 8.44 billion KRW (about $6.3 million USD).
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Out of the total, 33,000 shares — worth roughly 8.3 billion KRW based on the market value as of January 5 — were shifted to a newly created account under Jungkook’s name.
Additionally, 500 shares (worth around 126 million KRW) were sold and transferred to a third party.
In March 2024, Jungkook filed a lawsuit against the third party who purchased the stolen shares. The Seoul Western District Court ruled in Jungkook’s favor in February 2025, confirming that the purchase was invalid due to identity theft.
The court ordered the third party to return the shares. Though the third party initially appealed, the appeal was withdrawn by March 2025.
However, the original perpetrator remains unidentified. Given the level of access required — including Jungkook’s ID, banking passwords, and personal financial information — suspicions have arisen that the culprit may have been someone close to him.
Big Hit Music responded swiftly to protect Jungkook’s assets, freezing the affected accounts and ensuring the idol suffered no financial losses.
The agency has worked diligently to minimize the damage, restoring the stolen shares to Jungkook.
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This incident has raised concerns over the safety of celebrity financial assets during mandatory military service, particularly when privacy and security vulnerabilities can be exploited.
Fans and the public remain hopeful that the perpetrator will be caught and justice will be served.
