Ko Ji-yong seeks court order to block ex-wife from posting son's photos, but Heo Yang-im publishes new vlog anyway

Ko Ji-yong, a former member of the K-pop group Sechs Kies, has filed an injunction against his ex-wife Heo Yang-im — a family medicine specialist — seeking to bar her from interfering with his visitation rights and from posting photos and videos of their son Seung-jae online. Yet on the very day Ko's agency announced the legal action, Heo uploaded a new vlog featuring the boy. Heo has also filed her own lawsuit against Ko demanding unpaid child support, signaling that the legal dispute between the two is now fully under way.

Heo posted a video titled "Heo Yang-im Vlog 004" to her YouTube channel "Coque de Heo Yang-im" on Wednesday.

The video showed Heo attending an obesity medicine conference as a panelist, dining out with Seung-jae and watching a fireworks display with him from their home.

In the video, Seung-jae said Thursday was "the first day I ever tried tofu," to which Heo corrected him: "You had tofu? It was mushrooms." She then asked how the mushrooms tasted, and Seung-jae said, "They're good with sauce, but not on their own. They're mushy — like konjac jelly."

Back home, Heo watched the fireworks outside the window with Seung-jae and said, "It's beautiful." Seung-jae told her, "I think you like fireworks because they look like something out of a dream."

On the same day, Ko's agency Mountain Movement Story released a statement saying Ko had filed an injunction with the court against Heo, seeking to prohibit interference with his visitation rights and to ban the posting of photos and videos of the child.

Through his agency, Ko said that after their agreed divorce on April 24, 2024, he was rushed to hospital on May 9 with liver cirrhosis and shock, and had to prepare for the possibility of death. "Even during our marriage my illness was getting worse, but we reached an amicable agreement," he said. "For about two years I fought alone, going in and out of hospital multiple times, between life and death."

Ko's side said that throughout this period he had been in conflict with Heo over child support payments and visitation rights. According to his agency, Ko has seen his son only about six times in the roughly two years since their April 2024 divorce.

Heo had already filed a child support lawsuit against Ko on Sept. 5.

YouTuber and former journalist Lee Jin-ho said in a video posted Wednesday that Heo filed the child support suit against Ko on Sept. 5. Lee said Ko had agreed at the time of their April 2024 divorce to pay Heo 1.89 million won ($1,380) per month in child support, but had in practice only made payments in August and September this year. Lee said the total unpaid child support stood at around 40 million won, and the claim including interest amounted to around 50 million won.

Before filing the lawsuit, Heo also applied for a provisional seizure of Ko's assets, and his bank accounts and insurance policies are understood to have been frozen.

Ko married Heo in 2013 and appeared with his son Seung-jae on the KBS 2TV program "Superman Returns," winning wide public affection, before the marriage ended in 2024. The two reached an amicable divorce two years ago but have since been at odds over visitation rights.