A Filipino Kpop fan recently went viral after her shocking case of stealing 36,000 USD to spend on Kpop goods, sending the Kpop community into chaos.
Kpop fans across the globe show their love towards their favorite idols in various ways, and buying merchandise of said idols is one popular format. However, a teenage Filipino fan took things too far, stealing 2 million pesos (36,000 USD) from her family business and spending it all on merchandise.
This incident is reported by the popular Philippine news show Kapuso Mo Jessica Soho (KMJS), in which the girl in question was featured.
“I became a Kpop fan in 2017, when I discovered BTS through my classmates,” the girl said, adding, “I used to buy piece by piece back then, until I started seeing incredible collections on TikTok.”
According to KMJS, the girl initially used her allowance to buy some adequately-priced merchandise, but then started to purchase incredibly expensive goods. After running out of money, she started to steal from her family business’ cash register, piling up her collection with her family remaining unaware.
However, a family member soon discovered the collection, and revealed that among those, a photocard worth 900 USD was also found.
Since January, as much as 36,000 USD was taken from the family business, and this amount was likely all spent on Kpop merch.
The KMJS report has since wreaked havoc among the Kpop community in the Philippines, as local residents discovered the prices of Kpop merch and started to target fans.
In particular, various incidents of fans getting their Kpop photocards and merch stolen in public spaces and from their private packages are published on SNS platforms, causing worries.
As a result, fans are demanding for KMJS to clarify their report and change their negative tone regarding the Kpop fandom.
Source: Twitter, Khaleej Times
