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A group including a mixed martial artist with a background in organized crime, who choked a cast member unconscious during a YouTube broadcast, has been forwarded to the Incheon Prosecutors' Office.
Incheon Seo-bu Police Station announced that it has forwarded fighter A without detention on charges of assault resulting in bodily injury.
Three YouTubers who either aided and abetted the crime or manufactured a conflict situation along with fighter A have also been forwarded without detention on charges of abetting assault and joint coercion.
Fighter A and the others are accused of injuring a man in his 20s, identified as B, by choking him until he passed out during a YouTube broadcast at an officetel in Cheongna-dong, Seo-gu, Incheon, at around 4:00 AM on September 6.
At the time, B, who collapsed after losing consciousness, heavily struck his head against the floor and reportedly suffered a 12-week recovery injury diagnosis, including temporary paralysis in parts of his body.
Fighter A and the others claimed that their actions were staged according to a pre-arranged script, but police determined that the intent to cause injury was established.
In particular, investigations revealed that when a terrified B hesitated to engage in the scripted feud, the YouTubers present at the scene induced or coerced the confrontation.
Police stated, "Even if there was a script, we determined that the actions went beyond it," adding, "The accomplices were aware of the possibility of the crime beforehand and failed to intervene until he lost consciousness, which constitutes a crime of bodily injury."
(Reported by Jung Da-eun, Video by Hong Jin-young, Design by Yang Hye-min, Produced by SBS Digital News)