Knowing Bros’ team announces Lee Jin Ho’s exit amid illegal gambling controversy; promises to edit filmed content

Lee Jin Ho, a popular comedian, is currently in hot water after admitting to an illegal gambling addiction. It has been revealed that he borrowed money from several celebrities, including BTS’ Jimin, Ha Sung Woon, Lee Soo Geun, and more, and then failed to repay them. In addition, he is said to be in grave private debt. Amid this shocking situation, Knowing Bros announced that he will no longer be part of the show.

On October 14, the JTBC comedy program announced, “Lee Jin Ho will be leaving the recording starting this week.” They also promised to edit out his filmed content as much as possible before airing. Lee Jin Ho had been a regular cast member of Knowing Bros since October 2021.

Meanwhile, amid the controversy, he was absent from the press conference for Netflix’s Comedy Revenge, which is slated to premiere soon. Addressing the situation, a Netflix representative said, “We are deeply disappointed to learn about this just a day before the show’s premiere.”

However, they asked for fans’ understanding, saying, “Because the program is structured around team competitions, fully editing out specific teams presents significant challenges to the narrative.”

They added that, like all of their content, this show is also the result of the intense hard work and dedication of hundreds of crew and staff members, which would go to waste if the show were edited out.

Recently, Lee Jin Ho through his social media account admitted that in 2020, he started online gambling and soon became addicted to it. He confessed that he borrowed money from many celebrities and then failed to pay them back within the deadline. He added that after receiving harsh advice from close acquaintances, he belatedly came to his senses and stopped gambling. “I will continue to repay all of this debt on my own until I die”, he wrote in his social media post. 

The controversy quickly escalated as netizens started heavily criticizing him, saying that he only confessed to “gain sympathy” ahead of the police investigation. His agency, SM C&C, is yet to release a statement about the situation.

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