The Boyz CEO Accused of Embezzlement

The group The Boyz has filed a criminal complaint against Cha Ga-won, the CEO of their agency One Hundred Label (One Hundred), for embezzlement. The legal representatives for The Boyz recently filed a complaint against CEO Cha on charges of violating the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Settlement of Specific Economic Crimes, etc. (embezzlement).

Previously, nine members of The Boyz, excluding New, filed a lawsuit seeking the invalidation of their exclusive contracts against One Hundred in February. The reason for this was a breakdown of trust due to unpaid settlement fees, refusal to allow access to settlement data, and breach of management duties. The Boyz notified One Hundred of their intent to terminate their exclusive contracts, and the first hearing for the injunction to suspend the contract's validity was held.

In addition to this, CEO Cha Ga-won has also been sued for fraud and underwent a police search and seizure. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Financial Crime Investigation Unit searched CEO Cha's company and secured relevant materials. CEO Cha is suspected of proposing partnerships using artists under his agency, receiving advance payments, and then failing to proceed with the business. The alleged amount of damages from fraud is known to be in the 30 billion won range. The police are investigating by consolidating three separate complaints.

Amidst this situation, there has been a series of departures from affiliated artists, including The Boyz, Lee Mu-jin, Viviz, and Lee Seung-gi. Taemin of SHINee moved to Big Planet Made, and Lee Mu-jin notified his contract termination due to significant breaches of his exclusive contract. The group Viviz and Lee Seung-gi also requested contract termination around the same time, with Lee Seung-gi's side stating that the unpaid settlement fees began in September of last year. Chen, Baekhyun, and Xiumin of EXO (EXO-CBX) also sent a certified letter requesting contract termination due to issues such as unpaid settlements.

One Hundred's side refuted the claims made by The Boyz members, stating, "The claim that CEO Cha Ga-won took and used The Boyz members' dorm deposit is a completely baseless and malicious false accusation." They also stated their position that they have been working to maintain the group's activities.