K-pop star quits over sex scandal videos

A burgeoning K-pop sex scandal claimed a second scalp as a singer who rose to fame after coming second in one of South Korea's top talent shows admitted secretly filming himself having sex and sharing the footage.

Jung Joon-young, 30, announced his immediate retirement from show business amid allegations he shot and shared sexual imagery without his partners' consent.

"I admit to all my crimes," he said.

"I filmed women without their consent and shared it in a chatroom, and did such behaviour without feeling any sense of guilt," he added in a statement released late on Tuesday.

His admission came days after another K-pop star, Seungri, was charged with supplying prostitutes to potential investors as part of lobbying efforts.

Seungri, a hugely successful member of boy band BIGBANG who announced his retirement from show business on Monday, was also a member of the chatroom, the broadcaster said.

K-pop stars generally cultivate clean-cut images - and are actively promoted by the South Korean government as a key cultural export - making the scandal even more shocking.

In 2016, Jung was charged with filming a video with a sexual partner without her consent and knowledge, but prosecutors dropped the case for lack of evidence after she withdrew her accusation.

Jung said he would cooperate with the police investigation and apologized to his victims.

"Most of all, I kneel down to apologize to the women who appear in the videos and all those who might be disappointed and upset at this shocking incident," he said.

Seungri - who has multiple business interests - was interviewed at the weekend over accusations he lobbied potential investors by offering them the services of prostitutes at nightclubs in Seoul's posh Gangnam district.

The 29-year-old is also linked to a police investigation into Burning Sun, a nightclub where he was a public relations director, where the staff is alleged to have used hidden cameras to film women and used alcohol and drugs to sexually assault them.

South Korea has been fighting an epidemic of "spy cam porn" in recent years. Hidden cameras are sometimes placed in toilets and changing rooms, then uploaded online without the knowledge of victims.

The country saw more than 6,000 cases reported in 2017 alone.