Police conclude Kim So-hyun never dated Sae-ron as a minor
What's the story
The long-running legal battle involving South Korean actor Kim Soo-hyun, the late actor Kim Sae-ron, and YouTube channel Hoverlab (GaroSero Research Institute) has reached a major turning point. On Wednesday, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors's Office sought an arrest warrant for Hoverlab chief Kim Se-eui after a police investigation disproved claims that Kim dated Sae-ron when she was a minor. Here's what the police found.
Scandal genesis
The controversy has been ongoing since February 2025
The scandal began after Sae-ron's tragic death in February 2025, when Hoverlab and legal representatives linked to her family alleged that she had been in a romantic relationship with Kim since she was 15. However, the Queen of Tears actor's legal team maintained that they only briefly dated between 2019 and 2020, well after she was an adult.
Evidence refutation
Investigators have stated that Hoverlab deliberately created smear campaign
A digital forensics team from Seoul's Gangnam Police Station spent months investigating data trails left by Hoverlab. Their findings were clear: the channel had deliberately created a malicious smear campaign to generate YouTube clicks and revenue. The Korea Times reported that investigators stated in their warrant application, "The suspect distributed false information with the intent to defame (Kim), despite being fully aware that he had never been in a relationship with the deceased from when she was a minor."
Evidence manipulation
1st piece of evidence they pushed was later proven fake
The state's criminal case mainly relied on disproving two pieces of evidence pushed by the YouTubers: KakaoTalk chat logs and a private voice recording. Both have now been proven to be fake. The first piece of false evidence was 2016 KakaoTalk text message screenshots that Hoverlab claimed were intimate conversations between Kim and Sae-ron. However, forensic analysis showed these chats were actually between Sae-ron and an anonymous individual.
Audio fabrication
Sae-ron's voice recording turned out to be fake
The deception continued with an audio file presented during a Hoverlab press conference in May 2025. Se-eui and attorney Boo Ji-seok claimed the clip featured Sae-ron confirming she dated Kim during middle school. However, police later confirmed that the clip was created using generative AI voice-cloning technology. The National Forensic Service (NFS) initially couldn't confirm this due to poor file quality, but the police later used digital tracing and structural analysis to verify it.
Ongoing case
Se-eui also being charged with illegal distribution of private media
Apart from regular internet defamation, prosecutors are also charging Se-eui under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes for illegally distributing private media and threatening to leak more sensitive material. Meanwhile, police have booked attorney Boo as a suspected co-conspirator for helping organize, distribute, and reproduce the fake digital evidence. A judge at the Seoul Central District Court will review the arrest warrant on May 26 to decide whether Se-eui will be detained.