Former K-pop star Seungri's sentence reduced by half following appeal

Ex-BIGBANG member Seungri has had his prison sentence reduced to 18 months months following his final appeal trial.

According to Korean media outlets, the court halved his sentence after he acknowledged he was guilty of crime in the infamous Burning Sun scandal.

Seungri, 31, was convicted of arranging sex services for potential investors in his business, as well as overseas gambling at luxurious casinos in Las Vegas involving illicit foreign exchange transactions in August.

According to the charges, he arranged prostitutes for foreign investors on 24 occasions over five months from September 2015.

He was initially sentenced to three years in prison, and was ordered to forfeit 1.15 billion won (around $1 million).

BIGBANG, originally a five-piece band, enjoyed widespread fame following its 2006 debut. Following the scandal, Seungri, who had gone on to become a successful businessman, retired from the showbiz industry in 2019. —JCB, GMA News