Kim Soo-hyun’s agency seizes YouTuber’s apartments amid lawsuit involving late actress Kim Sae-ron

YouTuber Kim Se-ui, left, and actor Kim Soo-hyun / Xportsnews

Two high-end apartments owned by controversial YouTuber Kim Se-ui, head of the Garo Sero Research Institute, which is also known as Hoverlab, have been provisionally seized following a civil lawsuit filed by actor Kim Soo-hyun’s agency.

According to a report Wednesday by Money Today, the Seoul Central District Court approved a provisional seizure on Monday for two apartments under Kim’s name: a 120.27-square-meter unit in Seocho-dong’s Byuksan Blooming complex and a 208.65-square-meter unit in Apgujeong’s Hanyang 4th complex. The total claim amounts to 4 billion won ($2.9 million), with each property frozen for 2 billion won.

The creditor is Gold Medalist, Kim Soo-hyun’s management agency. The company has filed both a criminal complaint and a civil suit seeking 12 billion won in damages over alleged defamation and violations of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes and the Information and Communications Network Act. The complaint targets both Kim Se-ui and the family of the actress Kim Sae-ron, who died in February.

“The court’s approval of the seizure suggests that the damages claim and supporting figures presented by Gold Medalist were found reasonably persuasive," attorney Noh Jong-eon of Jonjae Law Firm told Money Today. "However, since provisional seizure is based only on the petitioner’s documentation, the defendant’s counterclaims were not considered. The actual amount could change depending on Kim Se-ui’s future arguments.”

Recovery of the full claim is likely to prove difficult, however, as both apartments are already heavily mortgaged. The two properties have existing mortgage claims totaling over 5 billion won, with 1.32 billion won on the Seocho apartment and 3.7 billion won on the Apgujeong unit.

If the court ultimately finds Kim Se-ui and Kim Sae-ron’s family liable, they would likely be held jointly responsible under South Korean law on collective torts. This legal concept holds multiple parties accountable for the entire amount of damages resulting from a shared illegal act, with the specific division of liability to be determined among them.

Kim Soo-hyun / Xportsnews

Garo Sero Research Institute had earlier claimed, citing a phone call with Kim Sae-ron’s family, that Kim Soo-hyun dated the actress for six years beginning in 2015 — when she was 15 years old. Kim Soo-hyun’s agency acknowledged the relationship but firmly denied that it began when Kim Sae-ron was underage, and has since taken legal action against both Kim Se-ui and the actress’s family.

Police are expected to summon Kim Se-ui for questioning soon. While investigators have already completed interviews with the plaintiffs, Kim reportedly postponed his own interrogation multiple times.

This is not the first time Kim Se-ui has faced legal trouble. In February, he was sued by YouTuber Tzuyang for alleged intimidation, coercion, defamation and stalking. In May, he was again sued after accusing journalist Kang Kyung-yoon of visiting a whistleblower’s home in New Jersey — an allegation made during a press conference.

“If Mr. Kim continues to delay without justifiable reason, we may escalate the case to forced investigation, including the possibility of requesting an arrest warrant," a police official said.

This article from Xportsnews is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.