South Korean singer-actor Sulli, whose real name is Choi Jin-ri, has been found dead at the age of 25.
The K-pop star was found unresponsive by her manager on Monday morning London time (around 3.20pm KST), on the second floor of her house in the South Korean city of Seongnam. Choi’s manager had reportedly visited her home after he was unable to reach her on Sunday night, following their phone call on Sunday morning (around 6.30pm KST), The Korean Herald reports.
The cause of death is currently unknown, however police believe that it might have been suicide. “It seems that Choi was living alone at the house,” authorities said in a statement. Investigations are still ongoing.
Choi first made her debut in the South Korean entertainment industry as a child actress, with roles in several television dramas such as 2005’s Drama City and Ballad Of Seodong. She later shot to nationwide fame in 2009 as a member of the K-pop girl group f(x).
In 2014, Choi took a hiatus from the industry after being the subject of malicious online rumours, and returned a year later to focus on her acting career. She made her music comeback earlier this year with her debut solo single, ‘Goblin.’
Former f(x) member Amber Liu released a statement on Twitter saying she’ll be “putting on hold my upcoming activities”, following news of Choi’s death.
Due to recent events i’ll be putting on hold my upcoming activities. Sorry everyone.
Thank you for your thoughts.
— Amber J. Liu 刘逸云 (@llama_ajol) October 14, 2019
Her agency SM Entertainment has yet to release a statement.