[Summary] "Rest in Peace" Yoon Ji-oh Instagram, Death and Hacking Rumors Controversy

Actor Yoon Ji-oh, who was active as a witness in the late Jang Ja-yeon's case and fled to Canada amid allegations of donation fraud. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Joo-hee] Actress Yoon Ji-oh, who was active as a witness in the late Jang Ja-yeon case and fled overseas amid allegations of donation fraud, has become embroiled in suspicions of social network service (SNS) hacking following rumors of her death.

In the early hours of the 24th, a post appeared on Yoon’s Instagram stating, "Hello. This is Ji-oh’s family. Please let our Ji-oh rest in peace. She was a very delicate and beautiful child."

It continued, "We will disclose all funds from the account prepared for public awareness and not used for private purposes. Videos for the deceased will be posted as requested once they are organized, and this place will be kept as a memory repository." The post also politely requested, "Please refrain from speculative and malicious comments."

This post spread through various online communities and SNS, leading netizens to speculate that Yoon’s safety might be at risk.

A netizen claiming to be a close acquaintance of Yoon said, "I don’t know who it is, but they crossed the line. Yoon Ji-oh’s account was hacked, but she is safe. The hacking situation is baseless." He added, "Because of the hacking, she cannot log into Instagram, so I am conveying this message through comments. Thank you for your concern."

Yoon has not made any statements regarding her personal safety. Currently, her Instagram account has been set to private.

Yoon claimed to be the sole witness in the 'Jang Ja-yeon case,' but amid allegations of embezzling donations, she left for Canada in April last year.

In September, Yoon sparked controversy by sharing updates about her birthday party on Instagram. As the controversy grew, the police announced that Yoon was on Interpol’s red notice list.

However, Yoon denied being subject to the red notice and claimed that the investigative authorities already know her whereabouts. She also stated that she is "being protected by the Canadian police."

However, since Canadian authorities do not immediately arrest suspects on Interpol red notices, it is known that extradition to Korea requires a criminal extradition decision process through the Canadian courts.

Regarding this, the Ministry of Justice stated that the extradition procedure for Yoon is underway and that they will track and extradite her to Korea through cooperation with Canadian authorities.