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Hyeonjae Kim “It’s not an assault, there will be no leniency, we will take legal action”
On the afternoon of the 13th, along with the news of Hyunjae Kim's departure from 'Peak Time', he posted a long article examining the facts about anecdotes from his school days with Mr. A, who claimed to be a victim of school violence.
Previously, on the 6th, a netizen claiming to be Kim Hyeonjae's classmate posted a post saying that he had been a victim of school violence by him and that he had been gaslighted countless times while in middle school and had considered making an extreme choice, sparking controversy.
Accordingly, after several days of discussion, the production team of 'Peak Time' said on the 13th, "We wanted to be careful in determining the facts to prevent innocent victims of this issue where the claims of both sides are conflicting," and "It is a matter that can be clearly concluded in a short period of time." “We decided that this was not the case and after discussion, it was decided that Kim Hyeon-jae would withdraw from the program.”
Kim Hyun-jae also announced his position on his channel. He said, "I would like to first apologize to the production staff of 'Peak Time', the contestants who appear together, the members of Team 24 Hour, and the fans who support them." It was so different, and I decided that it would be difficult to resolve the situation through further dialogue. All I can say is that it is absolutely not true. I will point out the innocent part. However, during the time when the unfairness is revealed, 'peak time' and “I decided to leave because I thought I could no longer cause any harm to the members of Team 24 Hour.”
Kim Hyeon-jae then revealed that he had numerous evidence that he did not commit school violence through conversations with his classmates, seniors, school teachers, and police officers when he was in middle school. In addition, he revealed anecdotes in which Mr. A acted with malicious intent towards him and said, "I hope they don't blame me by bringing all the medical records of my depression and illness after graduation," and that he will appoint a lawyer to sue Mr. A and take legal action. It was said that it was planned.Below is Kim Hyeonjae’s full statement.Hello, my name is Hyeonjae Kim from Team 24 Hour and I am appearing on Peak Time.
I would like to first express my apologies to the JTBC production staff, co-stars, Team 24 Hour members, and the fans who have supported me, for the damage I caused as I was recently mentioned in an unpleasant incident.
Not long ago, a post was posted claiming that I was the victim of school violence. I tried talking to the author directly, but our memories were so different that we decided that it would be difficult to resolve the issue through further conversation. What I can tell you is that it is absolutely not true. The idea is to point out the innocent parts. However, I decided to leave because I felt that I could not cause any more damage to the peak time program and the 24 Hour Team members while my injustice was being revealed.
Just as you can't make something that didn't happen into something that didn't happen, you can't make something that didn't happen become something that happened. This time, I learned that proving that something unfair is unfair is the most difficult thing, but I would like to take this opportunity to reveal my innocence and unfairness.
From now on, I will refer to the writer as A.
I grew up on an island, and when the branch school I attended as a child closed, I transferred to the main school in the third grade of elementary school. A and I attended the same school from then until we graduated from middle school.
It is true that the school violence incident that A claims occurred when he was in his second year of middle school, and that he went to the police station with A. However, A's claim that 'I reported it as continuous harassment and that I had the power to decide on a transfer' is not true.
When I saw A hitting friend B on the face with a slipper on the large stairs in the school yard, I pushed A and said, ‘Why are you doing that?’ and was reported for that. We went to the police station with the fathers of both parties, and the situation ended with them resolving their misunderstandings and returning home, and the word 'transfer' was never mentioned at that time.
Because our memories were conflicting, I asked my friend B, who was at the center of the recent incident, the police officer who worked at the police station at the time, my teachers, and my classmates for advice about what happened at that time. (The area where I live is a small island with only one elementary and middle school, and the number of students per grade is about 10, so although there are differences in the level of closeness, we spent a long time together at school.
When I checked with friend B, I said, 'I don't remember the details, but I think A didn't really hit me in the face with a slipper, but just pretended. 'There was nothing at that time that could be considered school violence,' he said.
In addition, a police officer who worked at the police station at the time said, 'I worked for about a year and a half, and if it had been a serious enough matter to warrant a transfer, I would have remembered, but that did not happen. He said, ‘If it was such an incident, it is not something that can be overlooked regardless of the parents’ close relationship.’
From 1st to 3rd grade, my homeroom teachers and friends also said, 'It is true that A reported it, but it ended well through reconciliation due to a misunderstanding between us. What A wrote is not true, and there is no fact that I harassed A.'
After the incident, A and I became distant, and furthermore, we did not interact with each other. Then, on the afternoon of the middle school graduation ceremony, the children in the class and their parents gathered in the cafeteria to celebrate graduation. At that time, A's mother came next to me and said, 'In middle school, children can fight and argue with each other. And then it grows. He said, 'Let's shake off our resentment and get along well,' and A and I reconciled once more. So, I remembered that there were misunderstandings and fights, but there was reconciliation.
I will also tell you my thoughts on the other cases claimed by A. The incident in which I slammed the door so hard that A's finger got caught, bled, and her nail fell off is also not true.
An injury this serious would have caused an uproar in the school and neighborhood, and it would have taken a long time for the wound to heal, but even when I asked my family, classmates, and teachers for advice, no one knew about the incident. . It's not that I don't remember, it's that it 'never happened'.
Also, I have never singled out A and said, ‘You stink.’ A said that his family background was not good, but not only A and I, but also many of my relatives' parents worked in the same job, so we grew up in a similar environment. There were times when water was cut off in the neighborhood, and there were times when we had to boil water in our house as well. That's why I've never had someone say that it was dirty or smelly just because they couldn't wash it. (Recently, when I spoke on the phone with C, another classmate who was also close to A, C said, 'There was a time when A and I made fun of each other for smelling, not you.')
There is no fact that A's opinion was ignored or said sarcastically. When there was a presentation or festival at school, I naturally took the lead in leading the event because I was learning to dance and dreaming of becoming a singer, and I was also a class officer. It is not true that A's opinion was ignored, but that 'A did not express an opinion'.
Person A said, 'The bullying became the most severe right after I received the disciplinary action. As a result, other students said, 'If you touch him, he will be reported', but I never bullied A before or after receiving the disciplinary action, and if it is true that he was ridiculed with such words, I think it is right for him to receive an apology directly from the person in question. . Because I have never led or done anything like this.
It is true that A tried to call my father and that I and A's father met, but I told A's father, 'Please do something about your son.' He didn't say something like, 'I will make you apologize for the present.' The reason my father didn't call A again was because I told him I would talk to A directly, not because he was trying to avoid contact from A.
Person A said, ‘Why is it easy to obtain information on one side, but difficult to obtain information on the other side?’ I would like to ask the same question. I didn't keep in touch with all the teachers, so because of this incident, I sought out the teachers' contact information and called each and every one of them directly to ask for their advice. I am curious about what efforts A made to contact the teachers. I would like to ask whether you were afraid of facing the facts during your phone call with the teachers.
I not only reached out to my close friends about this. When I spoke to A on the phone, A said, 'I remember a person who was one year older than me,' so I got that person's contact information and spoke to him. The senior said, ‘I don’t know the content of the article. But I did say it was difficult. 'I just remember the police coming,' he said.
It is also false that I tried to apply to the same place when A was serving full-time, but I did not apply because A's mother told my father, 'I can't see the two of them together.' I didn't even know that A was serving full-time, and regardless of A's service, I was active as a member of 'Black Six' when the first enlistment warrant came out, so of course I had to postpone my military service.
In addition, when A is talking to his juniors, people next to him ask 'Why?' Things like saying things like ‘Who do you want to play a game with?’, having someone run errands for cultural gift certificates, playing the wrist-slapping game, and asking them to put on a smiley face are also all untrue.
I debated whether or not to write it because I was afraid it would seem like I was diluting the point, but I also have bad memories of A. When I was in the 4th grade of elementary school, A brought some Barrow sap to give to the teachers. It was my first time seeing the sap of the Barrow tree. I was curious and said, ‘I want to try it too.’ A said he would bring it to me the next day. But the next day, what I received was urine-colored water that looked like urine to anyone, and I thought, 'Isn't this urine? When I said, ‘You try it,’ A couldn’t eat it. There were friends around me who witnessed it at the time, and because it was so famous, there are classmates who still remember it.
When I was in middle school, there was a night self-study class, and I would practice dancing in an empty classroom. One day, while I was practicing like that, I left for a moment and when I returned to the classroom, I saw A putting thumbtacks on the floor. No one witnessed that incident other than me, but I told it to a close friend at the time, and that friend remembered, 'You said that back then.'
If A claims again that he did those things because I was harassing him, I have nothing more to say. I have never bullied A. After entering high school, I went up to Seoul to prepare for my debut and have been without any interaction with A until now. So, I first found out that A was sick and that he had dropped out of high school while talking on the phone with A. It's unfortunate that A had poor health during high school, but I hope they don't make it my fault by bringing all the medical records of depression and illness after graduation. Also, I hope that people don't generalize things like they were quiet with the islanders due to the characteristics of the region or that they don't want to make a big deal out of it.
A's mother said in a YouTube comment about me, 'Kim Hyunjae's parents are trash and don't even apologize.' It has now been deleted, but a screenshot remains. Please, I hope that neither A nor A’s mother will bring up my parents with false words.
In his first post, A wrote, 'Hyeonjae made up a lie saying, 'I hit you with xx slippers, too.'' A few days later, he changed it to 'I didn't hit him, I just pretended.' There was no separate indication that it had been modified. I have a screenshot of the changed parts.
A added an additional message and said that he was bullied by me and became mentally unstable and violent since middle school, causing him to misbehave with his friends. I would like to say once again that I have never bullied A, and that I have not been responsible for his misbehavior. I hope you don't blame it on me. In addition, we have numerous testimonies and conversations with middle school teachers, police officers at the time, friends, seniors and juniors in the class, etc.
For the sake of my family and those around me, I will reveal my injustice and innocence. I have appointed a lawyer, and am preparing to sue A for defamation and spreading false information based on numerous evidence materials. We will take strong legal action without any leniency.
Thank you for reading this long article.
Taeyuna, Ten Asia Reporter youyou@tenasia.co.kr
