g.o.d’s Kim Tae Woo Apologizes For Illegal Use Of Ambulance After Driver Is Sentenced To Prison

Oct 16, 2023

g.o.d’s Kim Tae Woo has formally apologized for illegally using an ambulance to get to a performance venue.

On October 15, it was reported that back in March 2018, Kim Tae Woo paid the driver of a private ambulance 300,000 won (approximately $222) to drive him from Goyang to Seoul. According to police investigations, a staff member at Kim Tae Woo’s agency at the time suggested that if they made their trip to Seoul in an ambulance, they would be able to avoid a traffic jam and get to the performance venue much faster. The 300,000 won fee was paid by the event organizer.

The ambulance driver who made the illegal trip was sentenced to one year and six months in prison, along with a fine of 2 million won (approximately $1,478).

Meanwhile, the prosecution recommended that Kim Tae Woo and the agency staff member in question be fined without a court trial.

On October 16, Kim Tae Woo’s current agency, IOK Company—which is not the same agency that was involved in the ambulance incident—released a formal apology regarding the controversy. (Kim Tae Woo signed with IOK Company in 2022.)

IOK Company’s full statement is as follows:

"Hello. This is Kim Tae Woo’s agency, IOK Company.

We would like to sincerely apologize for the incident that was reported on October 15, and we are also releasing Kim Tae Woo’s personal statement [about the matter]:

“Hello. This is Kim Tae Woo. I’m sorry for having disappointed and troubled many people with this incident. I acknowledge my wrongdoing with no room for excuses, and I am deeply reflecting on it. I will take care to ensure that this kind of incident does not happen again. Once again, I sincerely apologize, and I bow my head in apology.”

Kim Tae Woo also acknowledged his guilt during the investigation process and diligently cooperated with the investigation, and he is sincerely repenting and deeply reflecting on the incident. Once again, we also sincerely apologize for having caused concern to many people through this matter, and we will make efforts to be even more careful in our artist management so that we never worry you with this kind of incident ever again. Thank you."

cr: Soompi