Since last week, it has been heavily reported that South Korean actress Han So Hee (한소희)’s mother was slapped with fraud accusations worth tens of millions of wons.
Earlier on 6th March (Sunday), Youtube reporter Lee Jin Ho uploaded a video titled “This is so unfair for Han So-hee… The shocking cruel story about her family?” on his official channel, where he came forth to shed more light on the controversy involving the popular Hallyu star.
For starters, the allegation first came to light after media outlet JTBC News reported last week on Wednesday (2nd March), “A, the mother of a celebrity, was accused of committing a fraud of 85 million won (~RM289K). A complaint against A was filed on the 25th of last month and A is being investigated”. As per the reports, A borrowed the money from her acquaintance from February 2018 to September 2019, promising that she would pay the acquaintance 2 million won (~RM6804) per month, but failed to settle the payment properly.”
In commenting about the case, Reporter Lee said, “The famous celebrity in this case is Han So Hee. Mrs. A is the mother of Han So Hee“. He also claimed that in addition to her mom, the “Nevertheless” actress might also get slapped with a lawsuit for allegedly violating the Electronic Financial Transaction Act.
He then explained, “So Hee’s mother used the account under her real name to borrow the money. As A was accused of fraud because she couldn’t pay back the money she borrowed, there is a high possibility that So Hee would also be punished for violating the Electronic Financial Transaction Act.”
In an interview with the reporter, A said, “I opened the bank account because she (So Hee) was still a minor at that time. I opened (the account) but she lost it. I had been keeping the account and there was a time that I couldn’t use my account, so I used it for several months.”
It was also reported that the accuser and A said that there was a disagreement over the amount of repayment because the loan was not filled out separately. “It is my fault that I didn’t repay borrowed money in time. I’ll work hard to repay my debts without filing bankruptcy,” A told Reporter Lee.
Just a day after the reports came to light, So Hee’s agency, 9ato Entertainment, stated that the Hallyu star will not be responsible for the related debts. The agency explained, “The artist’s mother, Mrs. Shin, used a bank account created under the name of Han So-hee in her process of borrowing money. Shin opened a bank account when Han So-hee was a minor and used it to borrow money (without Han So-hee’s knowing).”
The agency then added, “Several similar incidents had happened. There was even a forgery of private documents. A series of such cases led to civil trials, but the court clearly drew a line that Han So-hee was not related. Han So-hee’s mother borrowed money using an account created under Han So-hee’s name, but it is insufficient to say that Han So-hee should be jointly responsible for the debt. There is no evidence to prove that” (Ulsan District Court ruling on 8th April 2021)”
“We apologise for causing concern due to their artist’s personal affairs, not her work, but once again we deliver this additional explanation in hopes that there would be no more victims in the future. So Hee will not take responsibility for any debts related to her mother. This is to block the series of actions like this case in which the mother used her daughter’s name to borrow money and reputation as a celebrity to scam money,” the entertainment company continued their statement.
They then concluded by saying, “It is true that we cannot cut off the relationship between the mother and her daughter. We apologise to those who unintentionally suffered damages. Nevertheless, we respond intensely and hope that this incident will no longer be repeated. We ask for your understanding.”
