Tzuyang's blackmailers apologize amid legal actions, profit ban

This photo shows Tzuyang (left) posing for a photo after donating 200 million won ($145,000) to the humanitarian group World Vision on Wednesday. (World Vision Korea)

The three YouTubers accused of exploiting popular YouTuber Tzuyang issued an apology regarding the incident, as the victim plans to file criminal charges against them and the video-sharing platform disabled monetization for their channels.

Gu Je Yeok, Caracula and Jeon Gukjin all issued some forms of apology Monday, while still denying that they had blackmailed Tzuyang.

It was revealed last week in a recording of their discussion that the three were potentially involved in a blackmail of Tzuyang, real name Park Jung-won. The three discussed profiting off her painful past of being exploited and abused by her former boyfriend.

Gu Je Yeok, real name Lee Jun-hee, received money from Park for not posting about her past which he shared with Jin. The recording revealed the three discussing additional ways to use Park's past for financial gain. The conversation included Lee saying that he should get at least 200 million won ($145,000) from Park, and that he suspects Park to double-cross him after paying him off.

Lee apologized on Monday to the victim and her fans for losing his phone which led to the recording being released. He maintained that he is victimized by a conspiracy theory supposed "cartel" that wants to take him down.

Caracula also issued an apology on the same day, adding it was his responsibility for "causing a misunderstanding."

"If I had known about Tzuyang's situation, I would not have had a conversation with Gu Je Yeok in such a playful manner, which could have led to misunderstanding," he said in a video posted on his channel.

He has denied the exploitation accusation, and did not directly address the issue in the video.

Jeon, who has remained mum throughout the incident, posted a video Monday on his channel admitting that he did get paid 3 million won by Lee. He said he arranged a meeting with Park about the payout but eventually decided to leave the matter to Lee, and has not contacted Park since.

"I know it was wrong. The 3 million won I got (from Lee) was the first and last money I got for bad intentions," he said, claiming he only knew about the Park's ex-boyfriend financially exploiting her. He said he learned that Park had been through four years of physical and financial exploitation only after she posted a tell-all video Thursday.

Park, one of the most popular South Korean YouTubers, revealed in the video that she had been exploited for a sum of at least 4 billion won over four years by her ex-boyfriend. Park's lawyer filed a series of criminal charges against him recently, but the case was closed when the boyfriend killed himself during the investigation.

Park is one of just around a dozen South Korean YouTube channels that have more than 10 million subscribers. She gained popularity through her trademark "mukbang" -- eating content -- particularly for the videos of her eating exorbitant amounts of food.

Gu Je Yeok, Caracula and Jeon Gukjin's involvement was brought to light when a local politically-themed YouTube channel revealed the aforementioned recording.

In light of the situation, Tzuyang's legal representatives said they plan to file charges against YouTubers for blackmail, vowing zero tolerance against them. Officials from YouTube also confirmed that the monetization of Gu Je Yeok, Caracula and Jeon Gukjin's channels has been disabled.

The incident has sparked a nationwide concern over the so-called "cyber wreckers," referring to those who profit by posting rumors or negative news about celebrities often in a maliciously edited form.

Ryu Hee-lim, the head of South Korea's Korea Communications Standards Commission expressed concern about the situation in a committee meeting last Thursday, mentioning Tzuyang by name. “The committee should find appropriate measures against the YouTubers making money off suggestive or violent content," he said.

By Yoon Min-sik(minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)