Just Before Debut, a 60 Million Won “Scam”… Departure Ban for a Japanese K-Pop Trainee Caught in a Double Contract

A Japanese trainee in the K-pop debut lineup sparks backlash after a sudden disappearance over a “scam” worth tens of millions of won

A meticulously planned “double contract” and a sudden disappearance

A Japanese member, poised to debut as a K-pop idol group, suddenly vanished, prompting police to launch a full-scale investigation. Evidence of a malicious “scam” crime has come to light—where the person takes large investments and disappears—sending shockwaves throughout the music industry.

The Yeongdeungpo Police Station in Seoul placed Japanese trainee Mr. A, who was part of the debut lineup for a six-member male group, under an “accusation of fraud” departure ban and is currently conducting an intensive search for his whereabouts. In December last year, Mr. A disappeared completely after leaving a one-sided notice to the agency citing the collapse of their trust relationship.

A foreign trainee’s misstep that harms smaller agencies

The more investigators uncover the background, the clearer it becomes that the scheme is both cunning and malicious. According to an internal investigation by the agency itself, Mr. A had already maintained a “exclusive contract” with another agency and secretly signed a “double contract” with his current agency. Even more shocking is the existence of a “track record” in which he received investments using the same method at a previous agency and then vanished.

The group had already finished filming its music video and reached a “complete stage” where the public had been given access to the members’ faces and the audio tracks. However, due to Mr. A’s irresponsible escape, the remaining members had to reorganize entirely into a five-member lineup and force the debut forward, absorbing massive losses.

The scale of damage and structural limits of the “K-pop system”

The current agency strongly condemned Mr. A’s repeated behavior of abusing a domestic agency’s full support and then fleeing to Japan at the start of active operations. The “financial damage” the agency has been left to deal with due to this disappearance is severe. The total loss amounts to roughly “57.43 million won”, and considering even the intangible damage to its image, the losses are increasing exponentially. Police believe Mr. A is still “residing in Korea” and are focusing on securing him and his whereabouts.

Urgent “institutional improvements” and building a legal safety net

This case suggests a “dark side” hidden behind the glamorous global expansion of K-pop. Smaller agencies with weak response capabilities—such as limited financial strength and legal teams—are effectively left defenseless against crimes involving a foreign trainee’s “contract violation.”

According to statistics from the Korea Creative Content Agency, as of the end of last year, there were 42 “foreign trainees” affiliated with domestic agencies. While they have indeed become a core driving force behind the K-pop craze, it is more urgent than ever for agencies to prepare “safety devices”—from strengthening screening of residency status to supplementing standard contracts to prevent “legal disputes.”