Kim Soo-hyun, 4 hours of closed-door testimony at Kim Se's trial... No face-to-face meeting in court (comprehensive)

Actor Kim Soo-hyun testified as a witness in the trial of Kim Se-ui, the head of Garosero Research Institute, who was put on trial on charges of spreading false information about him.

The witness examination was held in private for over four hours, and the two did not meet in person in the courtroom.

At 2 p.m. on the 11th, Seoul Central District Court Criminal Agreement Division 26 (Chief Judge Lee Hyun-kyung) held the first trial for CEO Se-eui Kim's case on charges of violation of the Information and Communications Network Act (defamation) and violation of the Sexual Violence Punishment Act.

Kim Soo-hyun arrived at the court at around 1:40 pm on this day, but did not appear in front of reporters.

Considering that Kim Se's representative charges included violating the Sexual Violence Punishment Act, the court switched the trial to a closed session about 30 minutes after the start of the trial and proceeded with witness questioning of Kim Soo-hyun.

The witness examination continued for approximately 4 hours and 30 minutes until 7:10 p.m., and the trial ended at around 7:30 p.m.

The court judged that it would be difficult for Kim Soo-hyun to make a sufficient statement in front of Kim Se-ui's representative, so they separated the two to prevent them from meeting face-to-face.

In response, Representative Kim Se-ui protested, saying, “We have the right to question the witnesses directly.”

However, the court did not accept this and ordered Kim Se-eui's representative to leave the office, saying, "Ask questions through your lawyer."

Before going private, Kim Se-eui's representative denied the allegations again.

The defense lawyer claimed, “We deny all the facts of the indictment,” and “The facts stated by (Kim Se-eui’s representative) are not false, and we have also confirmed related materials with the bereaved family.”

Representative Kim Se-eui, who had the opportunity to speak, said, "We cannot verify or report on any data while detained," and asked the court to "grant bail as soon as possible so that we can have a fair legal battle with Kim Soo-hyun."

The court decided to continue the trial on the 13th.

Representative Kim Se-eui was arrested and indicted in June of this year on charges of spreading false information on YouTube and other sites that Kim Soo-hyun dated the late Kim Sae-ron when she was a minor, and that the direct cause of Kim Sae-ron's death was Kim Soo-hyun's pressure to repay debt.

He was also charged with defaming Kim Soo-hyun by distributing Kim Sae-ron's voice manipulated by artificial intelligence (AI), disclosing Kim Soo-hyun's private photos without permission, and threatening to expose personal information.

Representative Kim Se-eui requested bail last month due to mental illness and other reasons.

Meanwhile, Kim Soo-hyun's side has applied for the deletion and ban of publication of Ka Se-yeon's YouTube video containing defamation related to him and is awaiting the court's decision.