On December 5, attorney Bu Ji-seok of Lawfirm Buyu, representing Kim Sae-ron’s family, issued an official statement explaining the decision to disclose more evidence.
The attorney stated, “After we released forensic data extracted from the late actress’s phone, some people insisted that the person in the messages might not be actor Kim Soo-hyun. To end this dispute, we are releasing only the minimum amount of additional evidence.”
According to the released data, a contact saved with the phone number ending in 9859—identified by the family as Kim Soo-hyun—sent messages to Kim Sae-ron in June 2018 during his mandatory military service.
The conversation includes mentions such as “I brought an iPod into the base,” “If I get caught, I’ll be disciplined,” and “It could end up in the news.” Kim Sae-ron responded cheerfully with messages like “Yes♡” and “Good job♡.”
The messages are dated June 18, 2018, when Kim Sae-ron was 18 and Kim Soo-hyun was 30. Kim Soo-hyun enlisted in October 2017 and was discharged in July 2019.
The family further stated that the two met at Kim Soo-hyun’s residence on June 20, 2018, where they ate a homemade dakdoritang together and recorded a video. Due to ongoing accusations that this video was fabricated, the family released supplementary photos and KakaoTalk logs allegedly from the same day.
The newly disclosed logs include messages such as:
- Kim Soo-hyun sending a photo and saying, “I’ve arrived.”
- Kim Sae-ron replying, “Should I head over? To Seoul Forest?”
- Mentions of cooking dakdoritang, with Kim Soo-hyun assuring her, “Yes, I have the tools,” and expressing excitement with “I want to see you soon.”
Previous announcement was made on December 4 through attorney Bu Ji-seok of Law Firm Buyu, the legal representative of Kim Sae-ron’s family. Their statement comes after Kim Soo-hyun’s legal representative, attorney Ko Sang-rok, repeatedly asserted through YouTube channels, social media posts, and interviews that the previously circulated KakaoTalk screenshots were “manipulated” and “not from Kim Soo-hyun.”
According to the family, they felt compelled to release part of the forensic data submitted to investigators, as they claim attorney Ko continued to “frame the evidence as fabricated” despite receiving the original screenshots weeks earlier.
The released forensic data contains short excerpts of messages allegedly exchanged in April 2018, including phrases such as:
- “I want to see you right now,”
- “I miss you,”
- “I love you.”
Attorney Bu stated that Kim Soo-hyun’s own legal counsel previously defined such messages as “the kind of talk exchanged between couples” in his interviews therefore, by his own standard, the family argues the messages strongly imply a romantic relationship.
Attorney Bu emphasized that all materials were extracted directly from Kim Sae-ron’s phone, submitted voluntarily to law enforcement, and therefore “cannot be dismissed as altered or forged.”
The family also highlighted that the metadata matches the dates shown in the earlier screenshots claiming this further supports authenticity.
In their official statement, the family’s legal team said: “We have cooperated fully with investigators and submitted all electronic devices belonging to Kim Sae-ron. The KakaoTalk messages released today are part of the official forensic data. We ask attorney Ko to stop spreading unfounded claims of fabrication and to wait for the investigation results.”
They also stated that they were “left with no choice” but to publicly release evidence because the opposing side continued to publicly challenge their statements and push “misleading narratives.”
Actor Kim Soo-hyun and his legal team maintain that:
- The messages are not from him
- The screenshots are “spliced or inserted conversations”
- Claims of underage dating are “groundless and defamatory”
As of now, investigations are ongoing, and no official conclusion has been announced by authorities. Both sides have urged the public to await formal findings.
Sources: Daum
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