A female livestreamer on local streaming platform AfreecaTV was sentenced to seven years in prison for extorting millions of won in money and valuables from singer and musical actor Kim Jun-su, a local court ruled Thursday.
The Uijeongbu District Court found the woman guilty of all charges, including racketeering, stating, "The defendant kept private conversations with the victim and, as their relationship soured, decided to extort money and valuables."
She has been indicted in December last year for secretly recording private conversations with Kim, a former member of the K-pop group TVXQ, and threatening to release them to the public in exchange for monetary gains. According to the prosecutors, she extorted approximately 800 million won ($552,436) from Kim over nearly five years, from September 2020 to last November.
During her final statement in court, the convicted livestreamer said, “I made wrong decisions due to my ignorance, and I am deeply ashamed of myself.”
cjh@heraldcorp.com
