Strong Flash to Non-Fans
Security Company CEO Apologizes... "Promises to Prevent Recurrence"
Actor Byeon Woo-seok's bodyguard sparked a controversy over "excessive security" by flashing a light at regular passengers at the airport. In response, the head of the security company apologized and promised to prevent recurrence.
On May 1st, actor Byeon Woo-seok is greeting the audience at the red carpet event of the 25th Jeonju International Film Festival held at Moak Hall, Korean Sound Culture Hall, Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do. This is unrelated to the article content. Photo by Yonhap News.
On the 12th, a video showing Byeon Woo-seok using the lounge at Incheon International Airport was posted on social media (SNS). The uploader wrote, "I was sitting in the airport lounge with my parents preparing to travel when Byeon Woo-seok came in." The video was viewed over 2 million times on X (formerly Twitter) alone.
The controversial part of the video showed that although lounge users did not crowd around Byeon Woo-seok and only watched quietly, some bodyguards shone strong flashes toward regular passengers. Among the passengers was a child.
Netizens who saw this reacted with comments such as, "If people crowd around, just block them, why flash the light?", "Is a celebrity some kind of official?", and "Flashing a light at ordinary people who are not even fans in the lounge is really excessive," criticizing the excessive security.
In response, the head of the security company told News1, "Recently, the number of Byeon Woo-seok's fans has increased, and due to concerns about safety accidents, we have been paying close attention." He added, "We deeply apologize for causing discomfort to regular passengers," and said, "We will conduct internal training for all bodyguards to ensure that such situations never happen again."
Meanwhile, there have been several cases of physical clashes during the process of bodyguards blocking fans approaching celebrities.
Last year, a bodyguard for the idol group NCT Dream was sent to the prosecution on charges of professional negligence causing injury after pushing a female fan in her 30s at Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport, resulting in a rib fracture. A video also surfaced showing a bodyguard for the idol group Boy Next Door forcefully pushing a female fan who approached the singer with a camera at the airport, sparking a controversy over assault.
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