South Korean police are seeking an arrest warrant for a YouTuber who allegedly faked evidence that defamed actor Kim Soo-hyun and fuelled a scandal which ended his career.
Authorities say the YouTuber had manipulated screenshots of text messages and shared an audio file made with AI to give the impression that the actor had dated actress Kim Sae-ron when she was still a minor.
The allegations surfaced last year, shortly after Kim Sae-ron killed herself at the age of 24.
The scandal shook the country and upended the career of Kim Soo-hyun, who is a household name in South Korea. The actor has consistently denied the allegations.
The YouTuber, Kim Se-ui, has since posted a video claiming the authorities' allegations were a "subterfuge meant to disrupt his investigation".
Months after Kim Sae-ron's death, the YouTuber had posted online a voice recording in which the actress could be heard saying she had been dating Kim Soo-hyun since she was in middle school.
The YouTuber Kim Se-ui, who has nearly a million followers on his channel, had also presented screenshots of text messages purportedly sent between the actor and the actress.
Authorities now say that the voice recording was generated by AI.
They also allege that the YouTuber had manipulated screenshots of text messages sent from the actress's phone to make it look like she had been texting Kim Soo-hyun.
The YouTuber had knowingly spread the false claims for financial gain, authorities say.
His actions "collapsed Kim...
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