Starbucks Korea offices raided over controversial ‘Tank Day’ campaign
Police raid Starbucks headquarters over disastrous ad campaign
- South Korean police raided Starbucks Korea's headquarters as part of a criminal investigation into its controversial "Tank Day" promotional campaign.
- The campaign was accused of mocking the 1980 Gwangju uprising, a brutal military crackdown on pro-democracy protests, and referencing the torture death of activist Park Jong-cheol.
- Investigators are probing whether Starbucks Korea employees deliberately approved marketing that referenced these sensitive historical events, with the warrant issued on suspicion of insult.
- Starbucks Korea withdrew the campaign, apologized for its "extremely inappropriate" wording, dismissed its CEO, and pledged to strengthen internal review procedures and historical awareness training.
- The controversy sparked widespread public outrage, calls for a boycott, and political criticism, with some opposition figures accusing police of political motivation for the raid.
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