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(CNN) - Two high-profile K-pop stars have been sentenced to prison for sexual assault, the latest development in a sexual abuse scandal that has shocked South Korea and its music industry.
Singer and composer Jung Joon-young, 30, and musician Choi Jong-hoon, 29, were convicted on Friday of conspiring in the sexual assault of a woman who couldn't defend herself, according to the Seoul Central District Court . Jung was also convicted of filming women against his will and sharing sexually explicit material with members of an online group chat.
The court jailed Jung for six years and Choi for five years. Both must also complete 80 hours of a sexual violence treatment program.
Allegations of the crimes were made public for the first time in March, in the so-called "Burning Sun scandal." The Burning Sun club, located in the exclusive Gangnam neighborhood in Seoul, was allegedly the place of bribery, violence against customers, obtaining prostitutes for VIP clients, rape, trafficking and drug use, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Police .
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South Korean police confirmed that Jung and Choi were among the 10 members of the chat group. Jung was arrested several days later, admitting the charges and apologizing to his victims.
The investigation into Jung began during a separate investigation into the idol of K-pop Seungri. The Big Bang star, who oversaw the advertising of Burning Sun, was accused of recruiting women for prostitution and also participated in the group chat. In March, the 28-year-old announced his retirement from the entertainment industry, saying he was being "treated as an enemy of the nation during the investigation."
Broader problem
Explosive revelations forced South Korea and its multi-million dollar entertainment industry to take into account their attitudes towards women. In a month, four major stars apologized or announced their early retirement after being linked to group chat, reflecting a broader problem in the country of illegal recordings and voyeurism.
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That same month, a separate investigation found that 1,600 people had been secretly filmed in the rooms of a motel, and the images were broadcast live to more than 4,000 customers.
It comes after tens of thousands of women took to the streets of Seoul in 2018 to protest under the motto "My life is not your porn."
The ongoing scandal also questions the supposedly clean image of K-pop. The stars are expected to meet notoriously high standards of conduct, both from their management and from their fans. Their labels impose restrictions on who they can date in public, how they dress and how they behave in public.
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The limiting conditions of the contracts that the stars sign with the seals can create biased expectations about how the stars should act, while their sudden jumps to fame create fertile ground for bad behavior, experts told CNN in March.
Jake Kwon, Yoonjung Seo, James Griffiths and Helen Regan of CNN contributed to this report.
K-pop