Cha Eun Woo finally spoke out after being caught up in a tax evasion case. However, his apology drew negative comments from Korean netizens. On Thursday (January 22, 2026), Cha Eun Woo was reportedly being investigated by the National Tax Service for tax evasion.
The actor-singer owes over 20 billion won. The amount comes from a tax audit conducted before Cha Eun Woo began his military service last year. National Tax Service officials raised suspicions about the one-man agency run by his parents.
Since his trainee days, Cha Eun Woo has remained under Fantagio. He then founded the one-man agency Cha's Gallery with his parents in 2019, which is suspected to be a ploy to reduce income taxes.
As a result of the case, Cha Eun Woo's cosmetic advertisement as a brand ambassador for the Abib skincare brand was removed from his official YouTube channel and Instagram account.
According to the National Tax Service, Cha Eun Woo requested that the notification of his audit results be issued only after he served in the military camp. Despite initially remaining silent, Cha Eun Woo decided to release an official statement on Monday evening (January 26, 2026).
He uploaded a photo with a black background and a lengthy caption to his personal Instagram account. "I sincerely bow my head and apologize for causing concern and disappointment to many people due to the various matters I have recently been involved in," he wrote.
The man, whose real name is Lee Dong Min, admitted to taking time "to reflect and reflect on his words," which could indicate his regret. He also denied allegations that he enlisted to avoid an investigation by the National Tax Service.
"I am writing this after completing my daily duties at the military unit. I am currently serving in the military, but this was not a deliberate choice to avoid this controversy."
"Last year, I was in a situation where I could no longer postpone my mandatory military enlistment, thus I enlisted without being able to complete the tax investigation procedures," he explained.
"For the past 11 years, even though I have had more shortcomings than material possessions, I have been able to be in this undeserved position as Cha Eun Woo thanks to all of you're unconditional love and support."
Moving forward, Cha Eun Woo promised to follow procedures and accept the National Tax Service's decision. However, Korean netizens noticed that Cha Eun Woo didn't mention that he would pay the tax fine and instead cited a "misunderstanding."
Many Korean netizens suspect that Cha Eun Woo's statement was written by a lawyer from the Sejong Law Firm. He chose the same law firm as the NewJeans members during their legal battle with ADOR. "So she's letting her lawyer handle everything, even personal questions.
This is too obvious," wrote one netizen sarcastically on a Korean community forum. "There's not a single sentence, 'I will pay taxes,'" said one netizen. "He will never recover from this, goodbye," said another netizen who thought Cha Eun Woo's image had been tarnished.
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