Comedian Lee Jin-ho arrives at the Yeoju Branch of Suwon District Court on Sept. 1. [Newsis]
Comedian Lee Jin-ho arrives at the Yeoju Branch of Suwon District Court on Sept. 1. [Newsis]

Singer MC Mong lent 500 million won ($374,000) to comedian Lee Jin-ho, who was sentenced to prison for illegal gambling and other charges, a YouTuber claimed Thursday.

The claim was made by Lee Jin-ho — a former journalist who runs the YouTube channel "Yeonye Dwittongyeong Lee Jin-ho" — in a video posted to his channel Thursday.

Comedian Lee Jin-ho became addicted to illegal online gambling sites starting in 2020, losing large sums of money in the process. When his financial difficulties grew so severe that he could not pay his income taxes, MC Mong lent him 500 million won, the YouTuber said.

MC Mong lent the money to help resolve the comedian's tax problems, not to fund further gambling, the YouTuber said. "The intention was for him to quit gambling, sort out his tax issues and make a comeback," he said.

Last year it emerged that comedian Lee Jin-ho had borrowed large sums from fellow entertainers, including BTS member Jimin, comedian Lee Su-geun and singer Young Tak. He reportedly cited reasons such as a sick family member or needing help with tax problems, and the total amount borrowed was said to be around 2.3 billion won.

The YouTuber claimed that MC Mong's 500 million won loan was what ultimately brought the comedian's illegal gambling to light.

Cha Ga-won, chairman of entertainment agency One Hundred, learned that MC Mong had lent the money to Lee Jin-ho. Cha co-founded One Hundred with MC Mong in 2023 when the two entered the entertainment business together. The pair had been close enough that rumors of an affair circulated, but they are now said to have parted ways.

"Chairman Cha actively tipped off multiple media outlets about comedian Lee Jin-ho's illegal gambling from that point on," the YouTuber said, adding that he himself had received a related tip at the time.

The YouTuber said he met with comedian Lee Jin-ho in person to verify the tip. Lee did not deny the gambling but pleaded for the story to be held, saying he had already quit and was repaying his debts. Lee argued that if the gambling became public, he would be unable to work in broadcasting and would find it even harder to repay those who had lent him money, asking only for time to pay them back. The YouTuber said he agreed to hold the story.

The illegal gambling was ultimately exposed in October 2024 through another outlet's report, after which Lee acknowledged the facts and suspended his broadcasting activities. He collapsed at home with a cerebral hemorrhage in April while under investigation and was hospitalized for some time.

Lee was subsequently indicted on charges of gambling more than 870 million won across roughly 660 transactions, as well as drunk driving. A court recently sentenced him to 18 months in prison, suspended for three years, and ordered 120 hours of community service. The ruling was finalized after neither Lee nor prosecutors filed an appeal.


paq@heraldcorp.com