(Naver V)

Taeyong of rookie boy group NCT publicly admitted his past wrongdoings Sunday on Naver’s V app.

During a short interview, Taeyong admitted having harshly scolded other members for their mistakes.

“I made many mistakes as a young man. So I wanted to make sure that other members do not make the same mistakes,” he said.

Taeyong had been under fire twice before his official debut. He was caught illegally scamming customers who wanted to buy his products on an online website -- pocketing the money and selling faulty products.

A few months later, he left comments fat shaming an overweight girl. “There are only ten people in the photo, but she makes it look like there are 13,” he said.

(Online communities)

This is the first time that Taeyong has mentioned the controversy, ever since SM Entertainment released an official statement admitting the trainee’s mistakes, and apologizing to the victims and public.

By Kim Ji-young (christinekim@heraldcorp.com)