Kim Soo-hyun (left) and Kim Sae-ron. Photo: Instagram/@soohyun_k216,@ron_sae
After confirming that they were in a relationship, Kim Soo-hyun refuted the allegations that he dismissed Kim Sae-ron’s call for help over a debt connected to a drunk driving incident (DUI) that the late actress was involved in.
In a lengthy statement released on Friday, March. 14, Soo-hyun’s agency Gold Medalist, clarified the events surrounding Sae-ron’s financial situation, stressing that the former did not ignore the latter’s appeal for help.
“HoverLab claims that Kim Soo Hyun’s agency GOLDMEDALIST pressured him to repay debts incurred from the deceased’s drunk driving accident, and that when Kim Sae Ron sought help, Kim Soo Hyun ignored her, leading to her [death]. However, this is not true. At that time, GOLDMEDALIST paid off the entire remaining debt that Kim Sae Ron could not handle,” read the translated statement posted on the South Korean outlet Soompi.
Gold Medalist stressed that Soo-hyun never lent money to Sae-ron nor sought repayment of any debt from her, because the agency itself has taken responsibility for the financial obligations, which resulted in a total penalty of 1.014 billion won.
The company explained that despite the collective efforts to settle the debts, Sae-ron continued to face difficulties in her career after the accident and reached out to Soo-hyun, who was not aware of the financial matter involved.
“At the time, Kim Sae Ron, who had left our company, lacked sufficient legal knowledge regarding her debt. Thus, she sent a message to Kim Soo Hyun and not her creditor. However, Kim Soo Hyun was completely unaware of the situation between our company and Kim Sae Ron. At that time, it had been about four years since the two broke up,” they wrote, advising the actor to not respond as they would handle the situation with the needed legal expertise.
After elaborating the legal report, Gold Medalist underscored that they and Sae-ron’s legal team have settled the financial issue so that to connect the latter’s death to them is “excessively malicious.”
“Therefore, from Kim Sae Ron’s perspective, it can be seen that she understood she was completely free from her debt to GOLDMEDALIST. To link the cause of her death, which occurred a year later, to this is an unreasonable claim and excessively malicious speculation,” they stressed.
The company expressed sorrow over Sae-ron’s death, yet lamented that it has been “misinterpreted and falsely linked” to pressure Soo-hyun and the agency.
“It is only heartbreaking that this has been distorted as if we pressured her for repayment and that it has been maliciously portrayed as the cause of the deceased’s unfortunate decision a year later […] Kim Soo Hyun has been dragged into being the scapegoat for the tragedy faced by the deceased,” they stated.
Sae-ron died by suicide at age 24 last Feb. 16, Soo-hyun’s birthday.