Woman handed four-year sentence for blackmailing footballer Son Heung-min | Son Heung-min
A woman has been sentenced in Seoul to four years in prison for blackmailing South Korean football star Son Heung-min.
The woman, identified only as Yang, was accused of extorting 300 million won (£153,000) from Son in 2024 after sending him an ultrasound photo of a baby she claimed was his and demanding money to stay silent.
She then conspired with a man, identified as Yong, to try to extort more money from Son.
The Seoul Central District Court said Monday that Yang “lied” to Son, although she did not confirm whose child she was carrying.
The court said Yang denied the charges of extortion and attempted extortion. Yong, who confessed, was sentenced to two years in prison, the court heard.
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Son, 33, is one of Asia’s greatest football players. After a decade at Tottenham in the Premier League, he joined LAFC for an MLS record fee in August. Since then, he has scored 12 goals in 13 matches for the MLS club.
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported in May that a woman in her 20s and a man in his 40s were arrested on suspicion of trying to blackmail Son in June last year while he was still at Tottenham.
