An Ordinary Woman Falsely Accused as "Son Heungmin's Blackmailer"
"No Acquaintance at All"... Hints at Legal Action
Amid indiscriminate online exposure of personal information by netizens targeting the woman who extorted hundreds of millions of won by claiming to be pregnant with the child of Son Heungmin (33, Tottenham Hotspur), captain of the national soccer team, an unrelated woman has also suffered damage. The woman who was mistakenly identified has appointed legal representation and is taking legal action.
Recently, several photos of a woman have been widely circulated on social networking services (SNS) and online communities under titles such as "Son Heungmin pregnancy blackmailer’s Instagram exposed" and "Real face without mosaic." These posts included the SNS account address and photos of the woman in her 20s who was arrested on charges of extortion, but it was later revealed that the woman in the photos was actually an unrelated private individual.
Yang Mo, a woman in her 20s who claimed to be pregnant with the child of Son Heungmin, captain of the national soccer team, and attempted to extort money from him, is entering the Seoul Central District Court on the 17th for a warrant hearing. Photo by Yonhap News
This woman expressed her disbelief on SNS, saying, "Wow, am I the one who received 300 million won?" and warned, "Those who recklessly post an ordinary person's Instagram and accuse the wrong person, take a good look. I will file complaints for violations of the Information and Communications Network Act, insult, and defamation due to the spread of false information and indiscriminate malicious comments."
On the 20th, the woman’s legal representative, attorney Song Boram of River Law Office, stated, "False claims have been made on online communities and SNS that my client, Ms. A, is Son Heungmin’s ex-girlfriend, resulting in serious invasion of privacy and psychological harm," and clarified, "Ms. A and Son Heungmin have never met or had any acquaintance."
The statement continued, "Due to posts containing false information and photos of Ms. A, as well as comments filled with insults and sexual harassment, she is suffering severe distress. Therefore, we have initiated legal action against the authors of these posts and comments. We once again clarify that Ms. A has no relationship with Son Heungmin, and we strongly demand the immediate deletion and prevention of recurrence of posts and comments falsely stating that Ms. A is Son Heungmin’s ex-girlfriend." The statement concluded, "If the spread of false information continues after the release of this statement, we will take additional civil and criminal legal action against each author."
A photo posted on social media by a woman who was mistaken for the woman who threatened player Son Heungmin. Instagram
Meanwhile, the woman under police investigation for blackmailing Son Heungmin is reportedly a model industry worker who was in a romantic relationship with him. In June of last year, she sent Son Heungmin an ultrasound photo claiming to be pregnant, and later signed a written agreement stating she would not disclose the pregnancy in exchange for receiving approximately 300 million won. Police have confirmed that she underwent an abortion, but have not been able to verify whether the fetus was Son Heungmin’s biological child.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
