Son Heung-min blackmailer sentenced to four years in prison after pregnancy accusation

Martin Macdonald

• Updated: 8 Dec 2025 07:57 CST
• 2 min read

Nieuws

A woman who blackmailed Son Heung-min has been jailed for four years.

There were two perpetrators in the crime, a woman in her twenties and a man in his forties. The woman alleged that Son was the father of her unborn child, despite not knowing that was 100% accurate.

She threatened to go public with the accusations unless she was paid off and subsequently extorted $300 million won ($200,000; £153,000) from the professional footballer.

"[The woman] insists she received the money as compensation and portrays herself as a victim," prosecutors told the court in Seoul on Monday.

"But her claims do not fully match the facts," they said, accusing her of planning the crime "thoroughly".

The man in his forties, the accomplice, threatened Son to pay on 15 occasions and he received a two-year prison sentence.

After the latest demand for payment, Son went to the police.

During the summer, the South Korea international became the most expensive player in the history of Major League Soccer when he joined LAFC from Tottenham for a cool $26 million fee.

At his peak, he was one of the best wingers in Europe and helped Spurs win the Europa League last season as well as reach the Champions League final a few years ago.

Though he displayed signs of slowing down at the elite Premier League level, he has taken to MLS football like a duck to water.

Highest-paid players in the MLS

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