"JK's hat" that former foreign ministry official tried to sell at high price is confirmed by HYBE = Korea

A former official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has pleaded guilty to trying to sell a hat that JK (Jung Kook), a member of the South Korean boy group BTS, had left behind at a high price online. At the same time, BTS's management office HYBE also confirmed that the controversial hat had been left behind by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Passport Department.

The Seoul Seocho Police Station announced on November 7th that it had completed an investigation into A, who posted the article "Jung Kook's hat for sale" on the used trading site "Lightning Market".

On October 17th, A tried to sell hats at a high price by introducing himself as an employee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the “Lightning Market”. Regarding the hat, A claimed, "It was a lost item that was left in the waiting area when 'BTS' secretly visited the Passport Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in September last year to make a diplomatic passport." At the time, the asking price for the black hat posted by A was 10 million won (about US$8,000).

However, when A's content caused controversy, he went to the police box in Yongin, Gyeonggi-do on October 18th, turned himself in, and handed in the hat. A was confirmed to be a former contract employee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As a result, the police have been conducting a pre-investigation on A since October 26th.

A police official said, "The management office HYBE of BTS sent a reply to the passport department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in early September last year, saying that it was definitely a forgotten item. Currently, the specific charges are under consideration." he said.