South Korean singer Goo Hara’s death at 28 opens K-pop bullying debate
- Goo was found dead at her home in Seoul, police said on Sunday evening
- In May she was found unconscious in what was seen as a suicide attempt
Korean singer Goo Hara has been found dead at her home in Seoul, police said on Sunday evening. They are still investigating the cause of her death.
Goo, 28, was found at her home in Cheongdam-dong, southern Seoul, at 6.09pm local time, police said.
Goo made her K-pop debut in 2008 as a member of girl group Kara. After the group was disbanded in 2016, she continued with her solo career in South Korea and Japan.
In May, she was found unconscious in what was seen as a suicide attempt. She told reporters after her hospitalisation that she had been “in agony over overlapping issues” and vowed to recover.
Goo took her former boyfriend to court last year, accusing him of filming her without her consent and threatening to circulate a video of the pair having sex.
In August 2018, a court found the boyfriend, hairdresser Choi Jong-bum, guilty of assault and of threatening to circulate the sex video, although not of filming without her consent. He has denied the allegations and has filed an appeal against the sentence of 18 months in prison with three years of probation.
South Korea has one of the world’s highest rates of suicide which, according to recent government figures, is among the top causes of death for those under 40.