Rapper Arrested, Allegedly Assaulted Police Officer

South Korean rap sensation NO:EL has been arrested and booked for allegedly assaulting a police officer. Times of India reports that various Korean media outlets, as well as local police authorities, have accused NO:EL driving without a license. Additionally, NO:EL was non-compliant with the officer’s requests for a breathalyzer test. They also allege he is guilty of “obstruction of the execution of official duties under the Road Traffic Act.”

The rapper was reportedly in a car accident at 10:30 PM on Sept. 18. Thankfully, there are no reported injuries nor fatalities. The rapper was taken into custody after he became combative with police offers over a breathalyzer test and refused to show his identification. NO:EL reportedly got physical with the cops, allegedly hitting a police officer on his head. Following an investigation, NO:EL was released. 

This isn’t the rapper’s first run-in with the law. In February 2021, NO:EL was caught up in a legal battles after assaulting people in Busan, Korea. In 2019, he was indicted in Mapo-gu, Seoul after being accused of drunk driving and changing drivers following a car accident. As a result, NO:EL was sentenced to one and a half years in prison, as well as two years probation.

He addressed the arrest in a Sept. 19 Instagram post to his followers. “I have no words to say,” he wrote. “I will unreservedly take all the punishment that I deserve. I will work harder to become a more mature member of society. Starting with my fans, I am sorry to all the people who have been hurt because of me,” Soompi reports. 

NO:EL released his first album, Elleonoel, in Sept. 2017. His follow-up was released in April 2021.  The rapper is royalty in his own culture. He is also the son of Chang Je-won, a Member of the National Assembly from the United Future Party.