Former Baseball Player Jang Won-sam Fined for DUI Incident

Jang Won-sam, a former professional baseball player, has been fined 7 million won following a DUI incident that occurred last August. The Busan Eastern District Court issued a summary order on March 6, 2025, for violations of the Traffic Accident Handling Special Act and the Road Traffic Act. This order was confirmed on March 26.

On August 17, 2024, Jang was involved in an accident in Gwang-an-dong, Busan, while reversing under the influence of alcohol, colliding with a stationary vehicle. He is also accused of driving approximately 40 kilometers from Changwon, where he had been drinking, to his apartment in Busan while intoxicated. Reports indicate that his blood alcohol concentration was above the legal limit of 0.08% when tested by police.

After the incident gained media attention, Jang took to Instagram to explain the circumstances of the accident and to issue an apology. He admitted to driving with a hangover, stating, "I did not drink on the day of the accident, but I should have recognized that I was still under the influence from the previous night. I should have called a taxi or used public transport instead of driving. I regret my careless decision."

At the time of the incident, Jang was a cast member on the JTBC variety show 'Strong Baseball' (최강야구) and expressed his intention to voluntarily leave the program. He subsequently stepped down from the show and paused his public activities. Jang debuted with the Hyundai Unicorns in 2006 and played for teams including Samsung, LG, and Lotte before retiring in 2020.