Ravi

Suspicion of involvement in the 2022 epilepsy military service corruption case

On January 12, 2023, Ravi was named by the media as the rumored idol rapper who availed of the services of military broker Gu Mo to evade enlistment.^[1]

Ravi was accused of declaring epilepsy to lower his health to grade 4 in order to serve as a public service worker instead of an active duty soldier. The reason for this suspicion was due to his records being found on Gu Mo's phone, although the content of the records was never specified. That same day Ravi's agency GROOVL1N, released an official statement saying they were closely examining the truth about the situation: "It is only right to give a statement as quickly as possible, but since the problem is related to military duty, we think it is only appropriate to first find out the details and then give thorough explanations after, so we are currently trying to figure out the details. In addition, if there is a request for an investigation related to this case, [Ravi] will undergo it faithfully at any time."^[2][3] At this point, Ravi had been enlisted as a public service worker since October 27, 2022,^[4] and did not make any official statements until his first trial on April 11, 2023.

On February 9, prosecutors indicted 47 people for military service corruption. 42 people who admitted to falsifying medical certificates for epilepsy as well as 5 family members and acquaintances who served as accomplices were charged with violating the Military Service Act. Ravi was notably excluded from the indictments.^[5] The current representative of Ravi's agency Park Sung Kyu gave an official statement, saying that contrary to initial reports, Ravi was never even contacted by the prosecution or informed of his official charges. He further stated that Ravi did not receive a health grade of 4 due to epilepsy, which meant that Ravi did not use epilepsy as a reason to evade serving as an active duty soldier. Ravi had other valid health conditions that disqualified him from active duty service.^[1]

On March 6, Chief Judge Kim Ji-sook of the Seoul Southern District Court conducted a pre-arrest interrogation of Ravi, and rejected an arrest warrant submitted by the prosecutors, stating that Ravi posed no risk of fleeing or destroying evidence.^[6]

On April 3, Ravi was officially indicted by the prosecution. Prosecutors leaked the reports of his official medical examinations conducted by the Military Manpower Administration. The report revealed that Ravi had originally received a health grade of 3 during his first examination in 2012 due to bronchial asthma. By the time of Ravi's second examination in 2019, his health had already downgraded to grade 4. The leaked medical reports revealed that as early as 2019, Ravi was not qualified to serve as an active duty soldier due to various health conditions.^[7]

Ravi had multiple disabilities that disqualified him from active duty. He has narcolepsy, panic disorder, compulsive disorder, depression and bronchial asthma. There are many instances since his debut in 2012 where his various conditions have been mentioned publicly.

Ravi's narcolepsy was mentioned by the interviewer in this early news article from Sports Hanguk just 1 week after he debuted in 2012.^[8] Ravi later mentioned his narcolepsy himself in a Vogue Girl interview from November 2012. There are multiple clips of Ravi's narcolepsy during VIXX's reality shows MyDOL and MTV VIXX Diary that were filmed in 2012. In 2020, Ravi mentions on DinDin's SBS Music High radio show that his narcolepsy used to be so bad, he would fall asleep while being scolded.^[9] As a member of Season 4 of the KBS variety show 2 Days & 1 Night from 2019 to 2022, there were also various clips showing Ravi's narcolepsy while filming the show.

Ravi released the song "Live" (featuring Chungha) on February 18, 2019, to speak about his depression, panic disorder, and struggles with contemplating suicide.^[10]

Last May 2022 on their official YouTube channel, VIXX members discussed Ravi's panic disorder occurring as early as 2016. Ravi suffered a panic attack that lasted for hours, delaying the filming of their music video The Closer. In 2018, Ravi suffered a panic attack and collapsed while filming the MBC variety show [[Real Man 300|Real Man 300 (진짜사나이 300)]]. Ravi mentioned he suffered from panic disorder on episode 768 of the MBC TV series Radio Star Ravi's interview with GQ Korea in February 2020 revealed that in 2019, he was diagnosed with panic disorder and compulsive disorder.

Ravi talked about his compulsive disorder on episode 97 of the MBC talk show Video Star in 2018. On episode 66 of the KBS variety show 2 Days & 1 Night, Ravi confides about his panic disorder and compulsive disorder to cast member Yeon Jung Hoon.^[11][12] Ravi's goodbye letter on his last episode of 2 days & 1 Night also mentions his depression and panic disorder.^[13]

On April 3, Dong A Ilbo released an exclusive report on Ravi's indictment from the office of Rep. Jeon Ju Hye of the Ministry of Justice. They revealed that it was the co-CEO of GROOVL1N, only named by the media as CEO A, who contacted broker Gu Mo seeking a postponement for Ravi and an exemption for rapper Nafla. CEO A signed the contract with Gu Mo, and it was his messages not Ravi's that were found on Gu Mo's phone. Gu Mo sent a text message to CEO A saying, "Good, it's an exemption."^[14] There has been no evidence provided of Ravi directly contacting or seeking out Broker Gu Mo himself.

On April 11, Ravi attended the first hearing of his trial. The trial revealed that Ravi was unaware that he had even received an exemption from the Military Manpower Administration. Ravi submitted his own application for enlistment in September 2022 and entered the training camp on October 27, 2022. Ravi enlisted as a public service worker and did not proceed with evasion as he did not know he had received an exemption. Thus, he was initially unaware that he had committed a crime. However, Ravi also apologized to patients suffering from epilepsy and chose to accept all charges by the prosecution. Ravi also withdrew from his idol group VIXX.^[15]

This trial revealed that in 2020, Ravi was faced with a large contract penalty for an event he was unable to fulfill due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. The penalty was so large that Ravi's self-founded company GROOVL1N, was likely to close. Ravi had initially applied to postpone his enlistment to fulfill his contractual obligations in February 2021. At this point Ravi had been paying for the salaries of his employees out of his own pocket for over a year. Prosecutors revealed that this was also the time that co-CEO Kim contacted broker Gu Mo, initially seeking his help for a postponement for Ravi.^[15]

On August 10, the court found Ravi guilty of violating the Military Service Act and sentenced him to a 1-year suspended prison sentence.^[16] He did not go to prison, but instead received 2 years of probation and 120 hours of community service. Ravi also volunteered to enlist in military service twice. He will be required to undergo another health evaluation to determine if he will continue to be in public service for his second enlistment.^[17]

Ravi completed his enlistment as a Grade 4 social service worker according to the Military of Manpower Association's evaluation of his medical records in December 2025. He confirmed this in his public statement on his official Instagram account^[18]

1. Kim, Chae Yeon (February 9, 2023). "lse epilepsy military service corruption'". Naver. OSEN. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
2. Lim, M. (January 12, 2023). "Ravi's Agency Releases Initial Statement On His Alleged Involvement In Corruption To Evade Military Service". Soompi. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
3. Jin, Hye Jo (January 12, 2023). '병역 비리 의혹' 라비 측 "내용 파악 중…조사 성실히 임할 것" [공식입장 전문]. Naver. X Sports News. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
4. Baek, Ji Eun (October 7, 2022). "[Official] Ravi enters the hospital on the 27th, "I will serve as a social worker and faithfully perform my national defense duties."". Naver. Sports Chosun. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
5. Seo, Lee Hyun (February 9, 2023). "Prosecutors indict 47 people, including volleyball player Jo Jae-seong, for 'epilepsy military service corruption'". Naver. Hankook Ilbo. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
6. Jeon, Jae Hoon (March 6, 2023). "Arrest warrant for rapper Ravi on suspicion of 'false epilepsy' dismissed... "Admit the charges"". Naver. Newsis. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
7. Jeon, Jin Young (March 3, 2023). 라비, 소속사도 병역 면탈 시도 알았다? 브로커와 문자 오간 정황 포착. Naver. Edaily. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
8. Kang, Min Jeong (May 31, 2012). "[VIXX Relay Interview] RAVI "I Had A Great Time In Hongdae With Will.i.am"". Naver. Sports Hankook. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
9. 딘딘의, 뮤직하이 (October 21, 2020). "FULL 우리가 누구?!!!! 김선호, 라비 보는 라디오". Youtube. SBS Radio. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
10. Kim, D.S. (February 18, 2019). "Listen: VIXX's Ravi Shares Uplifting Message In "live" Featuring Chungha". Soompi. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
11. Bae, Hyo Joo (March 14, 2021). "'1 Night' Ravi says, "I know I was hurting physically and mentally 2 years ago... I was in a deep state of panic" Yeon Jeong-hoon's advice". Naver. Newsen. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
12. Hong, C. (March 14, 2021). "Ravi Shares His Concerns About Work-Life Balance With Yeon Jung Hoon On "2 Days & 1 Night" Season 4". Soompi. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
13. Cha, E. (May 2022). "VIXX's Ravi Tearfully Says Goodbye To "2 Days & 1 Night" On Final Episode Before Military Enlistment". Soompi. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
14. Park, Jong Min (April 3, 2023). [단독]라비, 뇌전증 연기해 진단서 받자…병역브로커 "굿, 군대 면제다". Naver. The Dong-A Ilbo. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
15. Jang, Jin Ri (April 11, 2023). "Ravi, the apology of the unforgiven "It was foolish to avoid military service, VIXX also withdrew" [Comprehensive]". Naver. SpoTV News. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
16. Jeong, Hye Won (August 10, 2023). "'False epilepsy' Ravi avoided prison sentence, '2 years probation'... Nafla was sentenced to one year in prison". Naver. SpoTV News. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
17. Lee, Ki Beom (August 10, 2023). "[Breaking News] Ravi sentenced to probation for 'military service corruption'... Nafla was sentenced to one year in prison". Naver. News1. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
18. Kim, Won Sik (March 26, 2026). "Hello this is Ravi". Instagram. Retrieved April 28, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)