The family of the late actress Kim Sae-ron (25) announced that they plan to take a strong stance, claiming that actor Kim Soo-hyun's (37) denial of their relationship constitutes 'defamation of character'.

On the 13th, Kim Sae-ron's aunt stated in an interview with 'The Fact', "What kind of parents would lie about a deceased child?" She added, "Kim Sae-ron became close with Kim Soo-hyun shortly before transferring to Gold Medalist as an agency. Due to the age difference, they weren’t exactly a couple but rather had a special emotional bond."

The aunt currently represents the family in official statements. She revealed that "even when Kim Sae-ron was transferring to Gold Medalist under YG Entertainment, they were very close. While the parents were worried due to the age gap and opposed their relationship, the two maintained their closeness regardless."

"Demand for 700 million won repayment… A difficult situation to recover from, with a legal notice received"

It was also reported that Kim Sae-ron, who has been facing financial difficulties following her DUI accident, was demanded to repay 700 million won by her agency. The aunt stated, "The DUI incident was indeed an error on Sae-ron's part, but sending a legal notice with the names of three lawyers to demand repayment of 700 million won from a financially struggling young person seems excessive."

She continued, "It seems the agency has judged that Kim Sae-ron’s recovery will be difficult, and perhaps they wanted to clear up the negative image associated with her relationship with Kim Soo-hyun as well."

Additionally, the aunt mentioned, "Initially, it seemed that Kim Soo-hyun understood Sae-ron's position, but later I heard that he had conflicts over financial issues with his cousin, and Sae-ron learned about this directly from him."

"Kim Soo-hyun's side will correct the facts"

Gold Medalist, the agency that represented Kim Sae-ron, is a one-person management company co-founded by Kim Soo-hyun and his cousin, and Kim Sae-ron was their first external recruit.

The suspicion regarding Kim Soo-hyun's relationship with minor Kim Sae-ron was first raised through the YouTube channel 'Garo Sero Research Institute.' The channel published images of Kim Soo-hyun kissing Kim Sae-ron on the cheek, questioning their relationship.

In response, Gold Medalist issued an official statement on the 13th, stating, "To correct the facts, we plan to release an official stance based on clear evidence next week."

Image source: tvn 'Queen of Tears', Instagram 'soohyun_k216', actress Kim Sae-ron / News1