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Lawyer files complaint against reporters who broke story of actor Cho Jin-woong's juvenile record

Published: 08 Dec. 2025, 13:21 Updated: 08 Dec. 2025, 18:41

LIM JEONG-WON
[email protected]

Actor Cho Jin-woong poses at the 44th Golden Cinematography Awards in southern Seoul on Nov. 18, 2024. [NEWS1]

A lawyer filed a complaint on Sunday against two reporters of the domestic media outlet Dispatch who first broke the story on Cho Jin-woong’s past as a juvenile offender, comparing the actor to the literary antihero Jean Valjean.

Kim Kyung-ho, a lawyer at Hoin Law, wrote on his social media that he had filed a complaint against the pair on suspicion of violating the Juvenile Act.

“These reporters tore open a sealed court ruling from 30 years ago and put it on display to the world,” wrote Kim. “This is a clear act of violence disguised as journalism.”

On Friday, Dispatch reported in an exclusive that Cho had been a juvenile offender as a teenager, claiming that the actor had committed gross misconduct, including a sexual offense. Cho’s agency, Saram Entertainment, said that while it was true that the actor had been sent to a juvenile detention facility, the accusation of sexual offense was not true.

Cho announced his retirement from the entertainment industry on Saturday.

Kim further argued in his social media post that “society has made the difficult decision to give Cho a chance to start over, and this is the intention behind the enactment of the Juvenile Act," asking, “Is uncovering the mistakes of a high school student from 30 years ago truly pursuing the public’s right to be informed?”

“Article 70 of the Juvenile Act strictly prohibits relevant authorities from responding to inquiries regarding juvenile cases,” Kim went on. “This is because the law recognizes that the leak of records itself can be a weapon that can end a person's public life.”

Actor Cho Jin-woong [SCREEN CAPTURE]

“If the reporters obtained this information through a public official or insider, it is not reporting, but a criminal act that illegally breached the protected barrier of justice,” the lawyer argued.

Kim further claimed that the reporting on Cho’s past was “an act of commercial voyeurism that mocks the rule of law,” arguing that “our society’s correctional system will collapse if the act of forcibly opening the doors closed by law is tolerated.”

On Saturday, Kim wrote a separate post on social media comparing Cho to Jean Valjean from author Victor Hugo’s 1862 novel “Les Misérables.” In the novel, Valjean steals bread for his starving family and serves a 19-year prison sentence.

“Just as Jean Valjean became mayor of Madeleine after his years in prison and helped the poor, so too did Cho live a life of rehabilitation, bringing comfort and joy to the public through the art of acting,” Kim said.

Kim’s comments and the defense of Cho Jin-woong by others, including Rebuilding Korea Party leader Cho Kuk as well as Democratic Party Reps. Kim Won-i and Park Beom-kye, have ignited fierce criticism online.

“This is outrageous; why are people defending someone who was arrested for rape?” read one comment online.

“I understand the objective of the Juvenile Act, but that doesn’t mean the offender has a say in whether they are redeemed,” said another.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [[email protected]]