![Actor Kim Soo-hyun (left) and Kim Se-eui, head of the YouTube channel Garosero Research Institute [Yonhap]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/07/04/news-p.v1.20260602.291ed6b085ef4dbab84fa8351e313498_P1.jpg)
An indictment against Kim Se-eui, head of the YouTube channel Garosero Research Institute, details how he repeatedly threatened actor Kim Soo-hyun, including by claiming the allegations against the actor were "incomparable to the N-room case."
Rep. Park Eun-jeong of the Rebuilding Korea Party said her office had obtained the indictment against Kim, who was indicted and taken into custody June 23 on charges including violation of the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection (defamation) and the Stalking Punishment Act, according to Yonhap News Agency.
According to the indictment, Kim made the remarks during a YouTube live broadcast in March last year, saying of Kim Soo-hyun: "This isn't just about being dropped from a drama. It's incomparable to the N-room case. There is something enormous here."
He went on to say that "the drama production company should know it can file 120 billion or 180 billion won in damages against Kim Soo-hyun," threatening to release related materials once the drama aired.
Kim also allegedly spread false claims across 25 YouTube broadcasts that Kim Soo-hyun had dated actor Kim Sae-ron when she was a minor, and that pressure from Kim Soo-hyun to repay debts was the direct cause of Kim Sae-ron's death.
He also faces a charge of attempted coercion for publishing a photo showing Kim Soo-hyun's lower body and implying he would release further private photos unless the actor issued a public apology.
Prosecutors also applied stalking charges for 23 YouTube broadcasts Kim made between March and April last year in which he claimed to expose false information about the actor's private life.
Kim is further accused of violating the Stalking Punishment Act's provisional measures after a court ordered him in April last year to stay at least 100 meters away from Kim Soo-hyun, yet he continued broadcasting on YouTube.
His first trial hearing is scheduled for Aug. 14.
Meanwhile, Eun Hyeon-jang, who runs the YouTube channel "Jangsa-ui Shin," said a court accepted his application to provisionally seize 100 million won ($64,300) in prison funds held in Kim's name.
Eun said in a YouTube broadcast on Friday that he had filed the application to coincide with Kim's birthday, adding that the ruling had come "a couple of days ago," and he released part of the decision from the Seoul Central District Court.
paq@heraldcorp.com
