Ex-cable network chief summoned for South Korean actress' suicide probe

SEOUL, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- South Korean prosecutors have summoned Bang Jung-oh, a former president of South Korean cable network TV Chosun, in a probe for an unsolved suicide case of a South Korean actress.

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office Prosecutors called Bang to question whether he was the person that then rising actress Jang Ja-yeon wrote on her list of influential public figures she was forced to have sex with, Yonhap News reported.

Bang was earlier confirmed to have had a drink with Jang in October 2008 but was acquitted on charges of sexual harassment.

Rumors, however, continued that Bang may be the one on the list.

Bang explained later that he was invited to a gathering on Oct. 28, 2008, where Jang attended as well. He said he stayed there for an hour and came back home. He denied that he never called or met her later.

Bang is the second youngest son of Chief Executive of Koreana Hotel Bang Sang-hoon, who was also summoned by prosecutors for the suicide case earlier this month.

Jang, who appeared in the popular TV drama "Boys Over Flowers," killed herself in March 2009 at the age of 26 and left a letter naming the men whom she accused of sexual exploitation.

She revealed names of powerful and influential men in business, government, and entertainment industries, who sexually assaulted her as she sought to advance her career in the South Korean entertainment industry, in the seven-page letter.

Jang's former colleague revealed in an interview with JTBC on Wednesday that she left a separate note naming the men she was coerced to perform sexual favors.