Former ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin’s criminal complaint against former HYBE CEO Park Ji Won and Chief Communications Officer Park Tae Hee has been dismissed, as police concluded that HYBE’s access to her company email was conducted legally.
According to an exclusive report by TenAsia on November 6, the Yongsan Police Station in Seoul decided not to refer the case for prosecution on October 14. The investigation concerned Min’s accusation, filed in November last year, that Park Ji Won and Park Tae Hee had violated the Information and Communications Network Act by unlawfully accessing her work email and laptop.
Min alleged that the two executives had forensically examined her company-issued laptop and email without consent, obtained KakaoTalk messages, and leaked them externally. HYBE denied the allegations, asserting that Min never returned her company laptop and that the company’s access to her work email during an internal audit was both authorized and appropriate.
Police found no evidence supporting Min’s claim that she returned the laptop to the company in August 2022, and determined that HYBE had legitimate grounds to access her work email during the audit. Investigators also ruled that HYBE had not illegally seized or searched the laptop belonging to a former ADOR deputy CEO, who was co-complainant in the case, without consent.
With the police deeming HYBE’s audit and the evidence obtained to be lawful, Min may face disadvantages in related civil lawsuits she has filed against the company.
Notably, the KakaoTalk conversations obtained by HYBE reportedly included discussions between Min and the former ADOR deputy CEO about plans for ADOR and the group NewJeans to operate independently from HYBE.
Meanwhile, Min Hee Jin’s legal representative, Shin & Kim LLC, confirmed to TenAsia that the case had been dismissed and stated that they plan to file an appeal against the police’s decision.
SEE ALSO: Min Hee Jin updates her Instagram with posts confirming launch of new agency OOAK
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