Kim Sae Ron Family’s Lawyer Addresses Accusations Of Doctoring Messages Between Her And Kim Soo Hyun
This article is part of our coverage of Kim Soo Hyun And Kim Sae Ron's Relationship. You can read more and view the entire timeline here.
The late Kim Sae Ron‘s family previously released KakaoTalk messages exchanged between Kim Sae Ron and Kim Soo Hyun, through their legal representative. The chat logs received explosive responses due to the nature of the messages. They seemed to prove that the two were indeed in a romantic relationship when she was a minor.
In response to the released chats, a portion were in doubt as to whether or not they had been doctored or edited. Attorney Bu Ji Seok, the representative lawyer acting on behalf of the bereaved family of the late Kim Sae Ron, responded to CBS No Cut News’ inquiry on March 28, 2025.
He carefully reiterated that while he cannot divulge if the released chats have already been analyzed with forensics, “the images released were formatted without a single word being changed.” As with press releases, many official sources often reformat chat logs into new images rather than provide the original screenshots. This can be for many reasons, such as to protect privacy, or to make it better for understanding, or due to legal complications.
“It is difficult to say at this stage whether it is forensic data or not,” carefully choosing his words. However, it was reconstructed without a single word being changed, and nothing was altered to soften it. The KakaoTalk messages exchanged with ‘aunt’ were also reconstructed in the same manner. The original data clearly exists, and since legal action is being considered, disclosing it is a sensitive matter.”
In the press conference, the bereaved family revealed KakaoTalk messages from 2016 when the deceased was 17 (15 in international age), suggesting that Kim Soo Hyun requested physical affection and expressed romantic feelings for Kim Sae Ron. This contradicts Kim Soo Hyun’s previous denial of a relationship with a minor, intensifying suspicions of grooming.
