Song Ha-yoon accuser declines compensation offer, demands actor's school records

Song Ha-yoon's accuser rejects her offer for travel to Korea, demands school documents to address defamation claims and cooperation.

Actor Song Ha-yoon [YONHAP]

A woman who accused Song Ha-yoon of school violence has refused the actor's offer to fly her to Korea for questioning.

The allegations first surfaced in April 2024, when JTBC’s “Crime Chief” reported that the actor and three classmates had physically assaulted the accuser in high school. The accuser, who now lives in the United States, said the attack had resulted in injuries requiring more than four weeks of treatment and that Song and the other alleged perpetrators were forcibly transferred to different schools by a disciplinary committee.

At the time, Song denied the claims, saying they were “completely groundless” and that she had “no connection whatsoever” with the accuser.

On Thursday, nearly a year after the controversy arose, Song’s legal representative announced that she had filed a criminal complaint against the accuser for defamation under the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection, as well as obstruction of business by fraudulent means. Song’s team also stated that it had offered to cover airfare, hotel accommodations and other transportation costs to enable the accuser to travel from the United States to Korea for questioning.

In response, the accuser on Friday urged Song to disclose the minutes of the relevant school committee hearing, documents signed by the district education chief regarding the transfer, official approval papers detailing the reasons for the transfer and confirmation of whether disciplinary records were preserved.

In an X post on Friday, the accuser said Song could prove her innocence by disclosing official school documents. “If she insists there was no school violence or forced transfer, all she has to do is request the relevant documents and make them public,” the post read. “That would resolve everything much faster and at a much lower cost than so-called support for travel expenses.”

Actor Song Ha-yoon [KINGKONG BY STARSHIP]

“There’s no need for me to fly to Korea right now, nor is it worth doing so just to resolve this case,” the accuser said, adding, “I never asked for compensation in the first place. In fact, I’m the one suffering losses and work disruptions from this situation.”

The accuser further claimed that Song’s side had misrepresented the offer as covering “100 percent of expenses,” when in reality it was only a partial reimbursement. “I ask that she stop the distorted media play,” the statement continued. “I will travel to Korea at my own expense and cooperate fully with the investigation.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY JANG GU-SEUL [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]