Former NCT member Moon Tae-il, known professionally as Taeil, has been sentenced to three years and six months in prison for his role in the sexual assault of a Chinese tourist visiting South Korea.
The Seoul Central District Court delivered the verdict on the K-pop star on July 10, 2025, finding the 31-year-old guilty of aggravated quasi-rape.
The court found that Taeil and two accomplices, identified only as Lee and Hong, sexually assaulted an intoxicated woman in June 2024. The three men encountered the victim at a bar in Seoul's Itaewon district, where she became heavily drunk after drinking with them. They then transported her by taxi to Lee's residence, where they took turns assaulting her while she was unconscious and unable to resist.
Under South Korean law, the crime is classified as "aggravated rape" due to the involvement of multiple perpetrators and "quasi-rape" because the victim was incapacitated. All three defendants pleaded guilty to the charges in June 2025.
The court described the assault as "extremely grave" and noted that the victim, as a foreign tourist, likely experienced significant psychological distress from being attacked in an unfamiliar environment. However, the judge imposed a sentence that was half of the seven years sought by prosecutors, citing the defendants' status as first-time offenders and their admission of guilt.
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All three men were immediately taken into custody following the ruling. In addition to the prison sentence, the court ordered them to complete 40 hours of a sexual violence treatment program and imposed a five-year ban on working in institutions involving children or adolescents.
Taeil was expelled from NCT in August 2024 when the sexual assault allegations first emerged, though the specific details of the crime were not disclosed at the time. SM Entertainment, the group's management company, stated that they had decided Taeil could no longer continue team activities due to the seriousness of the allegations.
The agency officially terminated Taeil's contract in October 2024, citing the impossibility of maintaining trust with him as an artist. Taeil, who served as the main vocalist of NCT and its sub-units NCT U and NCT 127, had been a member of the globally successful K-pop group since its debut in 2016.
The sentencing has sparked public outrage, with many critics arguing that the punishment is too lenient for such a serious crime. Social media users have expressed anger over the short duration of the sentence, with some calling it reflective of systemic issues in how South Korea's justice system handles sexual violence cases involving celebrities.
Since Taeil's departure from the group, NCT has not released any new music. The case has had a significant impact on the K-pop industry, highlighting ongoing concerns about celebrity accountability and the protection of vulnerable individuals.
