Actor Jang Dong-ju. [Herald POP (now Herald Muse) via Herald POP]
Actor Jang Dong-ju. [Herald POP (now Herald Muse) via Herald POP]

Actor Jang Dong-ju, who recently announced his retirement, has spoken out against allegations that he left a bar tab unpaid.

Jang addressed the controversy through OSEN on Thursday, laying out his account of the incident.

An earlier report claimed that Jang visited a nightlife establishment alone on May 14 and told staff that an acquaintance would cover the 3 million won ($1,950) bill, but that the acquaintance never showed up, prompting a police response.

Jang said the meeting had been arranged so he could ask the acquaintance for help repaying a debt, and that the situation arose because the acquaintance was too drunk to make it to the venue. He added that the bill has since been paid in full.

"Didn't the article itself say I told them I would transfer the money by 6 p.m. on the 16th and then went home?" Jang said. "But before 6 p.m. on the 16th even arrived, a story had already come out calling it a dine-and-dash." He added that he is preparing legal action over what he described as defamation, the spread of false information, and a violation of his privacy.

Jang had previously caused concern among fans last October when he posted "I'm sorry" on social media and then went silent for several hours.

In January, he revealed that his phone had been hacked and claimed he had suffered financial losses in the tens of billions of won after being blackmailed by the hacker.

He then announced on May 15 that he was retiring from acting. His agency, however, said the announcement was a unilateral decision on Jang's part and that it would respond firmly.

Born in 1994, Jang made his debut in the 2017 drama series "School 2017."

He has maintained an active career since, appearing in the Netflix drama series "Trigger" last year and the SBS drama series "No Tail to Tell" earlier this year.


min3654@heraldcorp.com