Why is NCT’s Renjun receiving massive backlash online? Sasaeng’s phone number controversy explored following apology statement release

On Friday, June 21, after NCT's Renjun exposed an alleged sasaeng's phone number through Bubble, the owner of the phone number came forward, saying that they are not a sasaeng. They explained through an X post that the call accidentally went through to Renjun when their intention was to call their friend. They claimed that they searched their friend's number in their contacts instead of typing it on the keypad.

However, the call was allegedly directed to the idol, and he stated that he would be reporting the netizen. Soon, their number was exposed through the idol's Bubble. The netizen claimed that they had been getting repeated threats and verbally abusive calls on the number, and it had reached a point where they had no choice but to change their number.

Since the netizen felt that it was unfair to them, they went and filed a report with the police and also attached proof of the same through their X account. On the other hand, both SM Entertainment and Renjun released statements apologizing for the mix-up. However, the controversy has not yet been settled, as netizens believe that the victim has not received a personal apology.

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All you need to know about NCT Renjun's phone number controversy as the alleged sasaeng reportedly reveals themselves as a victim

On June 20, Renjun took to his Bubble account and uploaded a screenshot of a phone number. He claimed that the owner of the phone number spam called the idol, so he therefore warned the person to stop their actions. However, the owner of the phone number soon claimed that they were not a sasaeng through an X post.

They explained that the call was a complete mistake and that they only called the idol once. However, the severe backlash they faced made them file a complaint with the police. Soon, SM Entertainment released a statement saying that they spoke to the head investigator of the police station and talked things through.

"After learning that the victim had contacted the local police station, we immediately apologized through the investigating officer and took steps to remove the post. We will continue to work to prevent any further harm and kindly ask that people refrain from contacting the victim."

The statement continued,

"Renjun is deeply reflecting on his careless actions, and we also sincerely apologize for our shortcomings in managing our artist. We once again apologize for causing concern to the victim and many others."

Reportedly, Renjun's manager apologized to the police in his stead since the idol was still skeptical of the person being a sasaeng. On the other hand, SM Entertainment promised to apologize for the damage caused to the netizen. However, the netizen made another X post explaining that though SM informed the police that the agency's legal team would personally apologize to them, they haven't heard from them at all.

"A few hours later, the investigator informed me that SM’s legal team was going to apologize, but I haven’t received any apology call yet. I’ve had to endure abusive messages from strangers and change my phone number just because of a mistaken call. I demand a proper explanation from SM."

On June 21, NCT's Renjun uploaded an apology statement through his personal Instagram account. He expressed that he made a mistake and regrets causing damage to the person.

"I apologize to the person who was negatively affected by my reckless behavior yesterday. I have always wanted to bring positive energy through music and performances, but I think I made a poor decision due to a lapse in judgment. I sincerely apologize to the individual who was hurt and negatively impacted by my actions."

He continued,

"Due to my reckless behavior, the victim is suffering right now. Please kindly stop contacting the victim. I deeply regret my actions and will be more careful not to act impulsively in the future. Once again, I apologize to anyone who was hurt by my actions."

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However, several netizens still argued that the apology was half-hearted. They also stated that the idol didn't apologize for mistaking them for a sasaeing or clarifying that they weren't a sasaeng.

Therefore, the idol has been at the receiving end of criticism for the same. On the other hand, people also explained that the netizen's theory doesn't make sense, and the excuse of them accidentally calling Renjun through a saved number doesn't make sense.