The family of the late Kim Sae-ron has filed a defamation lawsuit against YouTuber Lee Jin-ho.
On the 17th, attorney Bu Ji-seok, representing Kim Sae-ron's family from the law firm Bu-yu, submitted a complaint against Lee Jin-ho, the operator of the YouTube channel 'Entertainment President Lee Jin-ho', for defamation due to the spread of false information in front of the Seoul Police Agency in Jongno-gu, Seoul.
Before submitting the complaint, attorney Bu stated at a press conference, "If it were up to me, I would want to apply murder charges, but since defamation does not equate to murder, I hope that this point is sufficiently reflected in the sentencing and that a severe punishment is carried out," conveying the family's position.
After Kim Sae-ron caused a drunk driving accident in 2022 and passed away last month, the family claims that Lee Jin-ho posted several videos about the deceased on his YouTube channel, asserting that Kim Sae-ron's post of a photo with Kim Soo-hyun on her social media was a 'self-love rumor', which they argue is false information and constitutes defamation.
In this regard, attorney Bu explained, "The reason Kim Sae-ron posted a photo with Kim Soo-hyun was that after receiving the first cease and desist, she was suffering immensely, and she sent a text to Kim Soo-hyun asking for help. After not receiving a response, she thought that perhaps posting an old photo might elicit a response, so she posted an old photo for about three minutes before deleting it. After that, Lee Jin-ho portrayed her as a strange woman involved in a self-love rumor, leaving the family with no choice but to proceed with the lawsuit," adding, "To prove the falsehood of Lee Jin-ho's claims, we had no choice but to disclose the fact of their relationship and the old photos, and we ask for your understanding on this matter."
Regarding the investigation, attorney Bu pointed out that after the deceased's passing, Lee Jin-ho has been deleting related videos, raising his voice to call it "clear evidence destruction" and urging for a search and seizure and arrest investigation. He stated, "The family had to acknowledge the relationship to file a defamation lawsuit against Lee Jin-ho, and they hoped that Kim Soo-hyun would acknowledge the relationship. However, the false statement made it even harder for the family. I hope for a sincere apology even now," expressing anger, "Kim Sae-ron sent a text to Kim Soo-hyun asking for help, but in response, Kim Soo-hyun sent a second cease and desist."
He continued, "To briefly summarize the contents of the second cease and desist, it mentioned that, as the agency stated, it falls under the crime of breach of trust, so it couldn't be helped, but essentially it was a message to repay the debt within a certain period. There was also a threat that they would take legal action against the act of posting photos and not to contact Kim Soo-hyun or other actors from his agency directly. After the second cease and desist, there has been not a single contact from Kim Soo-hyun, and I couldn't reach other actors from the agency with whom I used to communicate. It is hard to even imagine the mental anguish the deceased must have felt upon receiving such a cease and desist."
"I don't know if they are waiting for the family's position with the public statement released now," attorney Bu pointed out the agency's attitude, announcing, "We are preparing for legal action against Kim Soo-hyun in the future."
Currently, Kim Sae-ron's family is revealing through another YouTube channel, Gaseyeon, that the deceased had been in a relationship with actor Kim Soo-hyun, who is 12 years older, for six years since she was 15 years old in 2015, and Gaseyeon has been continuously releasing photos of their skinship, handwritten letters, and text messages.
When Kim Sae-ron was under suspicion of 'self-love', Kim Soo-hyun's agency, Gold Medalist, which had maintained that it was "completely unfounded," changed its stance on the 14th, acknowledging the relationship but rebutting, "It is not true that Kim Soo-hyun dated Kim Sae-ron when she was a minor; they dated from the summer of 2019, after she became an adult, until the fall of 2020."
[Geum Bit-na, MK Sports Reporter]
