Court Denies Arrest Warrant for Im Hye-dong in Kim Ha-sung and Ryu Hyun-jin Threat Case

Yoo Chang-hoon, Chief Judge in Charge of Warrants, "Considering the Necessity of Explanation, Difficult to Approve Warrant Issuance"

The court dismissed the arrest warrant for former baseball player Im Hye-dong (28), who is accused of extorting large sums of money from Major League Baseball players Kim Ha-seong (29, San Diego Padres) and Ryu Hyun-jin (37) in a 'drinking party assault' case.

Former professional baseball player Im Hye-dong, who is accused of threatening Major Leaguers Kim Ha-sung and Ryu Hyun-jin to extort hundreds of millions of won, is leaving the Seoul Central District Court building in Seocho-gu on the morning of the 25th after completing the pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant review).
[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 25th, Yoo Chang-hoon, the chief judge in charge of warrants at the Seoul Central District Court, dismissed the arrest warrant for Im, who is suspected of joint extortion under the Act on Punishment of Violent Crimes, stating, "Considering the need for (additional) evidence and the suspect's right to defense, it is difficult to recognize the appropriateness of issuing an arrest warrant."

Judge Yoo explained, "Additional evidence is needed regarding conspiracy or division of execution with accomplices, and whether extortion against the separately identified victim (Ryu Hyun-jin) is established."

Im is accused of demanding hundreds of millions of won by exploiting conflicts while working as Ryu's road manager in 2021. It is known that Ryu Hyun-jin handed over about 300 million won to Im.

Earlier, Kim Ha-seong filed a complaint, stating that he got into a physical fight with Im at a bar in Gangnam, Seoul, in February 2021 and was continuously demanded settlement money by Im.

Im claimed that he was habitually assaulted by Kim Ha-seong. Kim Ha-seong's side denied the unilateral and habitual assault and additionally filed a complaint against Im for defamation under the Information and Communications Network Act.

The Gangnam Police Station initially investigated Im only on extortion charges, but after forensic analysis of a mobile phone, they found evidence that agency team leader Park was conspiring with Im and applied joint extortion charges to Im, requesting an arrest warrant on the 18th.