Han So Hee Responds To Reports That Her Mother Borrowed Money In Her Name

On July 19, Han So Hee posted a response on her blog to the reports of her mother’s unpaid debts.

A day earlier, “A” posted on an online forum that they had been scammed by the mother of a celebrity who had become popular through the drama “The World of the Married.” As evidence, “A” included texts between themselves and the mother in question.

In the post, “A” explained that from October 2015 to August 2016, they had joined a gye run by the celebrity’s mother and had sacrificed meals to pay the mother 2,450,000 won (about $2030) per month. A gye is a traditional private fund that is popular in Korea in which members chip in a small amount of money and take turns receiving a lump sum share.

“A” said that in September 2016, when they were supposed to receive their lump sum share, the mother went off the grid. “I said that I would notify the police, and she contacted me,” “A” wrote. “She said that she didn’t have the money. She had used all the money herself. I said that I would sue her, but other people stopped me. I got a promissory note and she said that she would pay me back month by month, but she changed her phone number and cut off contact with me.”

“A” continued, “I said that I would accept just the payment of the principal amount back, but she didn’t give me that either. She said that she would pay me back all at once when her daughter became famous, so I went to look for her daughter at her agency in Seoul.

“I had a dream I wanted to achieve with that money, but it’s all gone down the drain. Now I don’t care about the money, I just want that person to receive punishment. Every time I see that celebrity on TV, I get so angry. I can’t help but think, ‘Did she get famous from my money?’ I’ve been ruined, but that celebrity is successful even when her mother scammed people.”

“A” said that the total amount they were owed from the gye was 40 million won (about $33,200). “A” explained that after the scam was known, the other person in the gye had paid her back part of the money.

“A” wrote, “I told her to pay me back every month, but for the past four years, I would receive 300,000 won (about $250) or 100,000 won (about $80) every few months. I contacted her again after that celebrity went on ‘The World of the Married,’ but she had changed her contact information. I asked around to get her contact information, but she said that she wasn’t in contact with her daughter anymore, and made excuses saying that she would pay me back.

“Isn’t this too much? Leaving aside interest, I still have to receive 10 million won (about $8300). Ah, I recently got 300,000 won, so I guess it’s 9.7 million won (about $8050) now. I don’t care about the money anymore, I just want people to know what that celebrity’s mother has been doing. Every time I see that celebrity on TV, I get angry and frustrated. I can only think, ‘She’s doing so well, so she could take care of my money.'”

“A” added, “I have something to add. In the comments, people are telling me not to screw up the life of the child of the person who scammed me. So, is it okay to scam other people while you’re raising a child? I know that she kept meeting her daughter after she got divorced. After I got scammed, I didn’t push or swear at her. I never even asked the daughter to pay me back. The mother said to placate me that she would pay me back when her daughter became successful. I wanted to believe her. I did believe her. But does it make sense that someone who said they would pay me back every month would send me 100,000 won over three years?”

In her blog post, Han So Hee wrote:

Hello, this is Lee So Hee [her real name].

First, although I would not presume to understand everything, I would like to apologize to the victims who wrote their posts while feeling like they were standing at the edge of a cliff. I believe that they are in a situation in which I cannot say anything to comfort them.

I would also like to sincerely apologize to all the people who were made uncomfortable or hurt through this incident. I am deeply sorry.

I bear this shame and write this in hopes that other victims will not emerge.

When I was about five years old, my parents got divorced and I was raised by my grandmother. When I enrolled in high school, I transferred schools to Ulsan, where my mother was living, but I continued to live with my grandmother. After graduation, I moved to Seoul and began pursuing my current career path.

I was not in contact with my mother, so I learned about her debts after I turned 20. Because my mother was the daughter of the woman who raised me [her grandmother], and because of the moral duties of parent-child relationships, I repaid my mother’s debts as much as I could before I made my debut.

After my debut, through contact from various debtors, I learned that she had more unpaid debts that she had borrowed in my name. I also learned that she had put my name in the debt documents without my knowledge and that my name was involved in a debt so large that I could not handle it.

I was so young at the time, and through my immature judgment, I thought that the only solution was to repay the debt in her stead. However, I think that that ended up causing more victims in the end, so I apologize.

Finally, I would like to bow my head and apologize once again to the victims and those who were hurt by this ordeal.

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