The former member of the NCT Moon Tae-Il, professionally known as Toeil, was sentenced to three years and six months in prison for his role in the sexual assault of a Chinese tourist visiting South Korea.
The central district court of Soul issued the verdict on the K-pop star on 10 July 2025, finding the 31-year-old guilty of almost aggravated rape.
The Court found that Taeil and two accomplices, identified only as Lee and Hong, sexually attacked A woman intoxicated in June 2024. The three men met the victim in a bar in the Italian district of Seoul, where she dried heavily after drinking with them. They then transported it by taxi to the residence of Lee, where they alternate as they attacked it while he was unconscious and unable to resist.
According to the South Korean law, the crime is classified as “aggravated rape” due to the involvement of multiple authors and “almost rape” because the victim was incapacitated. All three defendants declared themselves guilty of the accusations in June 2025.
The court described the assault as “extremely serious” and observed that the victim, like a foreign tourist, has probably experienced a significant psychological discomfort from attacking in an unknown environment. However, the judge imposed on phrase That was half of the seven years sought by the ministries, citing the status of the defendants as transgressors for the first time and their admission of guilt.
All three men were immediately taken into custody following the sentence. In addition to the prison sentence, the Court ordered them to complete 40 hours of a sexual violence treatment program and has imposed a five -year ban on working in institutions involving children or teenagers.
Taeil was expelled from NCT in August 2024 when the accusations of sexual aggression emerged for the first time, although the specific details of the crime had not been disclosed at that moment. Sm Entertainment, the group management company, said she decided that Taeil could no longer continue team activities due to the severity of the accusations.
The agency officially ended the Toeil contract in October 2024, citing the impossibility of maintaining trust with him as an artist. Taeil, who was the main singer of NCT and his sub-unit NCT U and NCT 127, had been the member of the successful K-Pop group globally from his debut in 2016.
The sentence was taken public indignationWith many critics who claim that punishment is too indulgent for such a serious crime. Social media users have expressed anger for the short duration of the sentence, with some who define it by reflecting systemic issues in the way in which the judicial system of South Korea manages the cases of sexual violence that involve celebrities.
Since Taeil’s departure from the group, NCT has not published any new music. The case had a significant impact on the K-Pop sector, highlighting the current concerns about the responsibility for celebrities and the protection of vulnerable people.
