First-generation MMA fighter calls out ex-gang member turned fighter who choked man unconscious on YouTube livestream

Yu Woo-sung, a first-generation mixed martial arts fighter and head of Team Yu Gym, has publicly condemned a fellow fighter who choked a man unconscious during a YouTube livestream and left him unattended.

Yu uploaded a video to his YouTube channel Monday titled "Criminals cannot break from crime."

In the video, Yu included footage of the assault that has recently drawn public attention and urged other gym owners not to train people like the fighter involved. "These are people who used a technique that amounts to attempted murder against an ordinary person, left him there and mocked him — other gym owners must not teach them," he said.

Yu has been active since the early 2000s and is considered a first-generation MMA fighter in South Korea, having competed in major domestic organizations including KPW, Spirit MC and Road FC. His career record stands at 26 wins and 7 losses.

The Incheon Seobu Police Station said Monday it is investigating a fighter identified as A, 36, on assault charges.

At around 4 a.m. Sunday, A allegedly applied a guillotine choke to a man in his 20s, identified as B, at an officetel in Cheongna-dong, Seo-gu, Incheon, rendering him unconscious.

After B struck the back of his head hard against the floor and lost consciousness, A slapped him on both cheeks and said "let him sleep it off," leaving him unattended.

The assault was broadcast live on YouTube. Online commenters wrote, "Shouldn't someone call 119?" and "A trained fighter should never use techniques on an ordinary person."

B is currently hospitalized and is reported to be showing partial paralysis.

B was a viewer of the YouTube channel who had been in contact with the YouTuber and visited the officetel as a result.

A was previously a member of a criminal organization monitored by police but has since been removed from the watch list.

"We plan to proceed with the investigation while monitoring the victim's condition," a police official said, adding that authorities would also look into whether others present during the livestream were complicit in the attack.