Court Slaps Rs 32,000 Fine On Man Who Insulted Korean Star Suzy With Derogatory Comment

A hefty fine has been imposed on the anonymous person who made malicious remarks against South Korean actress and singer Bae Suzy. The Supreme Court convicted the man guilty by dismissing his second appeal on Thursday, July 27, according to Soompi. The alleged accused undergoing trial for his derogatory remarks on Suzy’s character has been ordered to pay 500 thousand won (approximately Rs 32,000) in damages. The person was sued by the Vagabond star’s agency related to his comments made on online websites between October to December 2015.

As reported by The Korean Herald, the man in question allegedly called Suzy a “national hotel girl” in the comment section of online articles. He was subsequently sued and initially sentenced to pay a monetary penalty but the accused requested a formal trial pleading not guilty. It is suggested the anonymous person was sentenced to pay a fine of 1 million won (approximately Rs 64,000) as per the ruling of the first trial. But when the man appealed the court’s judgment at a higher court, the ruling was overturned citing that his comments were not worthy of punishment.

Suzy’s legal representatives objected to the judgment and moved to the Supreme Court. According to The Korean Herald, the court deemed the man’s comment as freedom of expression but the “national hotel girl” comment was considered defamatory. “The expression ‘national hotel girl’ implies the opposite image of what Bae had established during her career, and it denounces her by sexually objectifying her,” reportedly said the Supreme Court. The accused appealed the decision a second time, however, the Supreme Court dismissed the plea by reforming its decision on Thursday.

Actress Suzy Bae rose to fame in the world of acting with her stints in K-dramas including Vagabond and Start-Up. She is currently gearing up to make a feature alongside actor Yang Se-jong in the Netflix romance drama Doona. Inspired by the webtoon titled The Girl Downstairs, Doona will premiere on the streaming site on October 20. In addition to this, Suzy has the sci-fi movie Wonderland opposite Park Bo-gum in the pipeline. The project also stars Jung Yu-mi, Choi Woo-shik, and Tang Wei in pivotal roles. Moreover, she will also appear in the K-drama titled Everything Shall Come True, which is scheduled to release next year.