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'ONLY 18 MONTHS?': Outrage as rapper Osshun Gum gets light sentence for molesting 9-year-old child

Fans are upset over South Korean laws for letting sexual predators walk away with limited sentence while minor offenses in the past have had longer sentences

A controversy in the K-pop industry that took fans by storm was that involving rapper Osshun Gum aka Choi Ha-min who was accused of molesting a child back in April 2022. The accusations against the rapper were initially released anonymously, but as soon as his chats in which Osshun had confessed to the crimes were released online, fans finally confirmed it was him after all. Now, months after the initial reports against the rapper, the case is being closed but general fans of K-pop are not satisfied with the sentence.

On June 22, the Jeonju District Court sentenced the 23-year-old Rapper Osshun Gum (born Choi Hamin) for violation of the Act on Special Cases concerning the Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes. The rapper was sentenced to probation for forced molestation of minors under 13 years of age with a suspended sentence of 1 year and 6 months in prison. With this sentence, fans of K-pop who have been tuning in to his music in the past are calling out the Korean Laws for not holding sexual offenses accountable in the same way as other non-serious crimes from the past have been punished.

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Along with probation, Osshum was sentenced to treatment for mental illness for two years and was told to complete a 40-hour sexual violence treatment program. Not only that but he was also restricted from employment at the child and youth-related organizations and welfare facilities for the disabled for three years. In lieu of his actions, the court said, "The defendant touched the buttocks of a child walking with his parents, and given that an agreement has not been reached with the victim to this day, severe punishment is inevitable."

The court then added that the final sentence was decided in consideration of the fact that the accused is reflecting on all his crimes, and he found the victim when he was in a mentally and physically weak state with bipolar affective disorder and committed the crime accidentally. In his closing argument, Osshum said, "I would like to once again sincerely apologize for hurting the victims and their families."

When his scandal was made public last month, the rapper made a post on his Instagram with the caption, "I feel sorry for the victim. I acknowledged that all these events were caused by my sick mind and received treatment at the hospital. I am currently taking medication and am recovering. I apologize for the embarrassment to our fans."

'SK's laws are really f**ked up'

Meanwhile, Osshun Gum aka Choi Ha-min, born in 1999, shot to fame when he was named the first runner-up in Mnet's rap show, 'High School Rapper' Season 1 back in 2017. In January of last year, his exclusive contract with the hip-hop label Just Music (Lynch Pin Music), led by rapper Swings, ended, and he continued his solo activities without being under any label. Soon after that, in June of 2021, Osshun was handed over to trial on charges of touching a minor of age 9 inappropriately in Busan.

Fans are calling out South Korean laws that have let a sexual predator walk away with a short sentence while other artists have served worse time for harmless crimes like smoking marijuana. One fan said, "This is seriously sad tho..." Another fan asked, "ONLY 18 MONTHS?" One fan said, "That country loves giving sa offenders a suspended sentence and probation when they should be locked in jail! They really deserve a place in hell and I feel so bad for all of the sa victims who’s attacker always gets a slap on the wrist praying for this child’s mental state."

One more fan said, "1 Year 6 months in prison. For molesting a child." A fan said, "Just 18 months…" Another fan said, "SK's laws are really f**ked up." A fan said, "Only 1 year and 6 months for traumatizing a child for life??? sk laws for sexual abuse are jokes." One fan said, "Only a year for child molestation??" A fan said, "THATS IT ??? this is fucking grossss."