K-pop Star Park Gyuri of Kara Faces More Crypto Accusations as Ex-Lover’s Trial Continues

Park Gyuri, a founding member of the K-pop girl group Kara, is facing fresh crypto allegations, days after telling a court she did not participate in her ex-lover’s alleged altcoin fraud operations.

The case revolves around a low-cap art-themed altcoin named Pica Coin and its alleged mastermind Song Ja-ho, Park’s ex-boyfriend.

At the time of the launch, Park was reportedly listed as Pica’s Chief Communications Officer and Advisor.

Last week, prosecutors summoned Park as a witness in the Song fraud case. She told a branch of the Seoul Southern District Court that she had played no part in any illegal crypto schemes or efforts to manipulate token prices.

She claimed that she thought Pica was an above-board art-technology startup. Park also claimed that she worked as a salaried worker at Pica “for a year as a curator and publicity manager, planning and promoting exhibitions for artists.” The K-pop star added:

“I knew nothing about cryptoassets. And I did not want any photos of me to feature in the Pica Coin white paper. I have never participated in or benefited from illegal coin operations. […] I have never made any profit from [this coin].”

Furthermore, Park claimed that she had invested 60 million won (currently $43,566) in Pica Coin in April 2021.

She said that she raised the funds for the purchase by selling her personal Bitcoin (BTC) holdings.

But the former Kara member said she “lost everything” when the Pica Coin was delisted from the Upbit crypto exchange two months later, in June 2021.

However, the Pica Coin CEO Seong Hae-joong told the media outlet iMBC that Park’s claims were untrue. Seong said that Song “directly compensated her with 60 million won in cash in December of the same year, acting out of pity for her.”

This was despite the fact that Park and Song reportedly broke up in September 2021. Seung provided the media outlet with screenshots of an alleged conversation about the “compensation” between Park and Song on KakaoTalk.

The screenshots appear to show Park asking Song when exactly he would send her the money on December 8, 2021. To this, he appears to respond: “Before the end of the month.”

Park also appears to “correct” Song’s intention to send 50 million, saying: “It wasn’t 50 million, but actually 60 million.”

Seong also stated that Park’s claims that she had never made any profit from crypto were “untrue.” He asserted that Park’s assertions were “one-sided” and “lacked credulity.”

The media outlet said that it had contacted Park’s talent agency Big Boss Entertainment with multiple unsuccessful requests for comment.

However, the newspaper Maeil Kyungjae quoted Park’s representatives as stating: “We cannot comment on matters connected to Ms. Park’s private life.”

Park has previously expressed her exasperation with the case on her social media pages, asking rhetorically why she is not being allowed to move on from her involvement with Pica.

Police arrested Song in 2023 on charges of fraud and breach of trust. Prosecutors have accused him of soliciting investments for artworks he did not own.

Officials also think Song may have also manipulated Pica Coin prices to his own advantage.

Park debuted with Kara in 2007, with the group disbanding in 2016. Kara reformed in 2022 and is currently touring Asia, with performances slated for Yokohama, Japan, and Macau in August.

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