Finally, there are even voices calling for his withdrawal... In the aftermath of the ”BTS” SUGA incident, 290,000 large fan accounts were ”deleted”

Amidst the online excitement over Korean boy group BTS' SUGA's drunk driving and false comments, the divisions within the fan community are becoming deeper and deeper.

　On X (formerly Twitter) as of the 13th, the account of the 'BTS' sound source information team, which provides information on the sound sources of 'BTS', has been deleted.

　The account had been actively leading the activities of many fans by watching and supporting the streaming of 'BTS' sound sources and promoting their achievements. As one of the larger channels with approximately 290,000 followers, it also played a central role in rallying the fan community, but can no longer be found any more.

　Earlier, the account's operator said after SUGA's drink-driving scandal "Everyone has been affected. Please make a quick decision", and also posted comments implying SUGA's withdrawal from the group. However, the aftermath of the account's disappearance, which was heavily protested by yet another group of fans who disagreed with such measures and thoughtlessly spoke out, forgetting the influence of the large account, is understood by many fans to be a clear case of the fan community being divided since SUGA's drink-driving fiasco. The case clearly showed that the fan community has been divided since SUGA's drunk-driving scandal.

　SUGA, who was enlisted as a social service member, was found drunk and riding an electric scooter on the side of the road in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on the night of the 6th, and collapsed alone. At the time, SUGA made a comment to the police to the effect that he had had one beer, but his blood alcohol level was 0.227%. This is higher than the 0.08% level for licence revocation, meaning that he was drunk at the time of the arrest.

　SUGA and their agency BIGHIT MUSIC have acknowledged that it is true that they drove while intoxicated and apologised. However, unlike their initial statement that they did not think it was possible to use an electric kickboard while drunk, it was revealed that SUGA was riding an electric scooter, which led to a discussion about the downsizing of the incident. BIGHIT then said, "We were not able to get a thorough grasp of the situation and we said it in a hasty manner. There was no intention to downsize the case" and launched a second apology.

　Nevertheless, the situation still shows no sign of being resolved. Questions continue to be asked whether it is telling that SUGA, a licensed adult, did not know that electric scooters should not be ridden while under the influence of alcohol. The silence has added to the confusion, with the fan community divided between those who are defending SUGA and those who want to weigh in, with some taking the position that it is a natural step and others that it is a very extreme measure. Some of these fans have continued to engage in bizarre behaviour, such as malicious written terror attacks on other unrelated celebrities and an authentication challenge to imitate SUGA's drunk driving. It remains to be seen whether SUGA and HYBE can contain the situation amidst the chaos.