What is the difference between electric scooter and electric kickboard? Alleged inconsistencies in BTS' Suga’s DUI official statements leave internet confused

On August 7, BTS' Suga made headlines after his drunk driving incident. The famous BTS rapper was reported to had ridden a electric kickboard to his house on the night of August 6 while being under the influence.

While he was trying to park his vehicle at the gate of his residence, he slipped off. Seeing this, a police officer nearby came forward and gave him a breathalyzer test (a test for alcohol). The singer got fined, and his license was revoked.

However, there have been inconsistencies in the two statements, one issued by BTS' Suga and his agency, BigHit Entertainment, and the other issued by the police. While police referred to Suga’s vehicle as an electric scooter, the singer called it an electric kickboard in his DUI (driving under the influence) statement.

For those who don’t know, an electric kickboard is a term commonly used for such electric vehicles that have no seats. But the one that BTS' Suga used, as seen in the alleged CCTV footage, had a seat. Therefore, the singer was booked for an accident on an electric scooter as per Korean traffic laws.

The rules of traffic regulate these two vehicles differently, which means that the electric scooter and kickboard will get varying penalties. The penalties for scooters are likely to be harsher than those for kickboards.

The penalties for scooters will include license revocation and paying other fines since they will be treated like any other gas-powered vehicle. In the case of Kickboard, the rapper could face a license suspension and have to pay a fine of about 100,000 KRW.

This conflict between the two statements flooded the internet with numerous reactions from BTS' Suga fans and other social media users. Many defended Suga by saying that he rode an electric kickboard which had a seat and not an electric scooter.

"It was an electric kickboard with a seat similar to the one in the photo and not a Scooter !!! Now can you change the subject ?!"- a fan commented.

“Those of ya who are wondering, THIS is Electric Kickboard Scooter. My nephew used to ride one of these to school. Not sure about SK, but ya don't need license or insurance to ride one in North America”- one netizen commented.

“At first I thought yoongi meant a scooter like a pep Scooty BUT THE FACT THAT HE HAD TO APOLOGISE FOR THOSE ELECTRIC KICKBOARD SCOOTER”- another netizen remarked.

Many more mixed reactions were recorded online. A fan expressed concern over Suga’s police investigation, saying:

“wdym yoongi electric kickboard drunk driving incident being under police investigation for violating the road rraffic act with a scooter”

“Yep but the google translation of bighit notice mentioned a kickboard so everybody thought that the electric scooter was something like this”- another netizen wrote.

"because it’s not a big deal for most americans i’m assuming considering their biggest fan base is in america where scooters are all the same it’s just funny to us. That they’re making it a big deal when he managed to get home safely parking before falling"- a fan wrote.

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More details about BTS' Suga’s drunk driving incident

Suga of BTS was charged with drunk driving violations on the night of August 6th by Seoul's Yongsan Police Station. The K-pop idol was discovered after falling off an electric scooter/kickboard while being under the influence of alcohol.

An officer on patrol near the presidential office was the one who first encountered it. After picking up the singer from the ground, the officer noticed the odor of alcohol and took him to the nearest police station. Thankfully, no one was hurt, and no property was damaged.

In addition to this confusion, the Military Affairs Administration of South Korea said in a statement that the event did not happen in their area of duty, and therefore BTS' Suga will not be punished. This means there will be no impact on his military service time.

Following the news, the idol took to Weverse and apologized for his actions. Additionally, his agency BigHit Music also released a statement sharing further details regarding the incident.

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