Kim Se-eui of Gaseyon denies all charges; jury trial request rejected

Kim Se-eui, head of the YouTube channel Gaseyon, denied all charges at his first court hearing after being indicted on charges including defamation of actor Kim Soo-hyun.

The Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 26, presided over by Judge Lee Hyeon-gyeong, held the first pretrial hearing Friday in the case against Kim, who faces charges including violations of the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection and the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes.

Kim's legal team said he denies all charges.

His defense attorney argued that allegations related to spreading false information about the cause of actor Kim Sae-ron's death amounted to "an expression of opinion, not a statement of fact."

On charges that Kim used AI to fabricate an audio recording of Kim Sae-ron's voice, the defense said the deceased's mother had confirmed that the voice in the recording was her daughter's, adding that "there is no basis to conclude there was any intent to defame."

The court also rejected Kim's request for a jury trial, deciding to proceed with a standard bench trial.

The court made the decision after reviewing arguments from both sides. Prosecutors opposed a jury trial, citing the presence of a victim in a sexual violence case and concerns about privacy violations. Kim Soo-hyun's legal team also objected, saying Kim Se-eui had been sending public messages in the form of letters written from detention and that a jury trial could be exploited as an emotionally charged public relations battle.

Kim is accused of spreading false claims through YouTube and other platforms — including that Kim Soo-hyun had dated Kim Sae-ron when she was a minor and that pressure from Kim Soo-hyun's side to repay debts was the direct cause of her death. He also faces charges of defaming Kim Soo-hyun by distributing an AI-manipulated recording of Kim Sae-ron's voice, and of threatening Kim Soo-hyun by broadcasting private photos without consent, threatening to release additional personal material, and demanding a public apology.

A court issued an arrest warrant for Kim in June, citing concerns that he might destroy evidence or flee.