Kim Se-eui, the representative of the Garosero Research Institute YouTube channel, revealed a recording containing the voice of the late Kim Sae-ron, claiming that she dated actor Kim Soo-hyun since middle school and had sexual relations. In response, YouTuber Lee Jin-ho argued that the recording had been manipulated by AI, labeling it as 'a nationwide scam by Gaseyeon Kim Se-eui.'

On the afternoon of the 7th, a press conference was held at the Space Share Samseong Station Center in Samsung-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, featuring Bujiseok, the representative attorney of the late Kim Sae-ron's family, and Kim Se-eui, representative of the Garosero Research Institute.

On that day, attorney Bujiseok stated in a statement, "The reason we held the press conference on March 27 was to present evidence that the deceased had been in a relationship with Kim Soo-hyun since they were minors and to put an end to the controversy. The family sought an apology from Kim Soo-hyun, but instead received a lawsuit for damages of about 12 billion won and accusations, alongside a press conference from Kim Soo-hyun asserting that he never dated the deceased when she was a minor, claiming he would prove the truth through investigative agencies."

Attorney Bujiseok claimed, "The family was diligently cooperating with the investigation and providing all requested materials. However, contrary to his claims of proving the truth through investigative agencies, Kim Soo-hyun repeatedly asserted that the evidence was fabricated, and YouTubers like Lee Jin-ho were making similar claims without clear evidence," and released the recording.

According to the released recording, a woman presumed to be Kim Sae-ron said, "I really trust you. Please keep this. I dated my older brother Soo-hyun. You might not believe it because it sounds crazy, but we started dating from middle school, then broke up after entering college. We dated from the start and broke up in college," adding, "People like my older brother, who are gold medalists, are really scary and do anything, so you have to really keep this. I've felt used since middle school, and I know how you treated me back in middle school," and mentioned, "He showed me photos taken with that guy, and it was the kind of photo you wouldn't want anyone to see. He said he saved my photo as 'seaweed' because it smelled like seaweed when he slept with the idol."

She further stated, "The first time I did it with that guy was during the winter vacation of 8th grade. Looking back now, I think I was taken advantage of. There are only a few people who know about this, and they have the same reactions. They all think I'm crazy and wonder why I didn't just let it go."

In response, attorney Bujiseok stated, "On that day, the family filed a complaint against Kim Soo-hyun for violating the Child Welfare Act and for false accusations. Article 17(2) of the Child Welfare Act punishes those who cause children to engage in obscene acts or commit sexual abuse against children such as sexual harassment," adding, "The family confirmed that Kim Soo-hyun committed obscene acts or sexual abuse against the late Kim Sae-ron from the winter vacation of her 8th grade, leading to the complaint under the Child Welfare Act."

Right after the press conference ended, Lee Jin-ho's rebuttal press conference took place in an adjacent meeting room. Lee Jin-ho stated that Gaseyeon was conducting a nationwide scam, asserting that the recording was fabricated and presenting evidence.

Lee Jin-ho stated, "I am inevitably revealing this position to prevent additional victims arising from the indiscriminate allegations made by Kim Se-eui without the slightest investigation. At the center of this incident is a con artist from New Jersey, a person who extorts money through voice phishing and similar scams." He added that the con artist contacted him, stating they wanted to talk about the Kim Soo-hyun case on April 5. After the call, he claimed that the con artist met with Kim Sae-ron in a Korean bar in New Jersey last November and borrowed $4,500 from her, stating that they recorded a voice message instead of drafting a loan agreement, which included remarks about Kim Sae-ron dating Kim Soo-hyun post-adulthood and that Kim Soo-hyun is a nice guy.

Lee Jin-ho stated, "Before I secured the materials, it was an unbelievable claim. However, after another call with the New Jersey con artist on April 6 and obtaining the voice recording from Kim Sae-ron on the 16th, I was astonished to find it sounded just like her voice. Even acquaintances could recognize it as Kim Sae-ron's voice." He mentioned, "I initiated verification, and surprisingly it was analyzed that the recording was generated based on AI-created voices, which were further modified by a third party, namely the New Jersey con artist, by adding their voice and noise."

He further stated, "It turned out that this individual was also attempting to contact Kim Soo-hyun's side while demanding a large sum of money. After confirming the recording materials, Kim Soo-hyun's side ignored him. The con artist's method was simple: he contacted each stakeholder to hear what they wanted and created a recording based on that. The problem was with the approach and content of this New Jersey con artist. The more I spoke with him, the more his statements changed, and he himself ended up contradicting his own previous words. I couldn't believe the words of such a con artist and chose to ignore them. However, there was someone who got caught in that trap: it was Kim Se-eui."

Lee Jin-ho pointed out, "Kim Se-eui, along with attorney Bujiseok, had previously disclosed their Kakao Talk messages between Kim Soo-hyun and Kim Sae-ron from March 2016. However, there were suspicions of manipulation due to their inability to disclose hash values through forensics, and despite requests to 'release the original materials,' they failed to provide any answers. This is not the end. The New Jersey con artist claimed he was assaulted, sending photos claiming to be evidence of the attack. However, those photos were found to be easily searchable images on Google, dating back four or ten years. With such false claims, they stated they would hold a press conference revealing Kim Soo-hyun's serious crimes, threatening to expose fabricated information without any verification to cause harm to someone."

Lee Jin-ho also presented the recording materials of the New Jersey con artist, as well as the Kakao Talk conversations with Kim Se-eui and a voice appraisal report, asserting that the recording was fabricated. According to the conclusion of the voice appraisal report, experts noted, "An analysis of the recording file for authenticity revealed that there are completely silent periods present, and a significant number of vertical cut patterns were observed in the spectrogram, indicating a significant imbalance in energy distribution across frequency bands between the two speakers, alongside traces of artificial voice modulation resembling voice warp."

He concluded, "Considering all these circumstances, it is highly likely that the file was reconstructed through editing. Furthermore, the existence of silent periods raises strong suspicions that initially edited statements were re-edited in a second phase."

After all the press conferences concluded, Lee Jin-ho addressed Gaseyeon's claim that he was offered 1 billion won to hand over the recording, stating, "I have never listened to the recording. However, to say they would give me 1 billion won for the recording is a ridiculous assertion. If I had 1 billion won, I would have left Korea and not been involved in such matters."

Lee Jin-ho remarked, "This person tends to say that 'Kim Soo-hyun's side offered me 1 billion won.' I don't understand how such statements circulate, and I had four conversations with this individual, during which the exact recording files exist. If the contents are deemed authentic, I am willing to have them verified through the investigative agencies."

A reporter named Gang Kyung-yoon also appeared at the press conference, stating, "I would like to clarify the factual circumstances regarding Gaseyeon's claims." He addressed the accusation that he had threatened the informant in New Jersey, stating, "There are immigration records from January 1 to May 5 this year that show no record of my visit. My previous statements alleging that I visited the informant's home in New Jersey are clear falsehoods and black comedy."

In particular, reporter Gang Kyung-yoon stated, "Kwon Young-chan, Kim Se-eui, and singer Seo Sa-jang have spread so many falsehoods about me that I am currently pursuing legal action. They even involved me using absurd deep voice impersonations. I was under so much stress that I took a year off from work last year. I express regret for being brought into such false claims during the press conference."

[Photo] OSEN DB

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