On February 20, V posted a statement on his personal social media account after reports revealed that parts of his past conversation with Min Hee Jin had been presented in court. Clarifying his position, he emphasized that the exchange was purely personal and denied having any intention of siding with either party in the ongoing conflict.
“It is part of a private, everyday conversation I had while empathizing with someone I knew,” V wrote. “I have absolutely no intention of taking sides.” He added, “However, I am very taken aback that the conversation was submitted as evidence without my consent.”
The issue resurfaced following the February 12 ruling by the Seoul Central District Court regarding two lawsuits: HYBE’s request to confirm the termination of a shareholders’ agreement and Min Hee Jin’s lawsuit demanding payment for stock transactions. The court reportedly dismissed HYBE’s claim and ruled that HYBE must pay approximately 25.5 billion KRW to Min Hee Jin.
During the proceedings, Min Hee Jin’s side submitted KakaoTalk messages exchanged with V as part of their evidence, and the court accepted them. According to media reports on February 20, the messages included V sharing thoughts about plagiarism controversies involving ILLIT and NewJeans. In the reported exchange, V allegedly told Min Hee Jin, “(There’s always talk about plagiarism, and not once has there been a time it didn’t come up.) Yeah… I also looked at it and thought, ‘Ah, this is kind of similar…’” It was also reported that V acknowledged that HYBE Chairman Bang Si Hyuk had produced ILLIT’s debut album.
After the contents became public, V expressed his surprise and discomfort over the use of the private conversation in court without prior consent. His statement makes clear that he does not wish to be perceived as aligning with either HYBE or Min Hee Jin amid the corporate dispute.
As the HYBE–Min Hee Jin conflict continues to draw attention across the K-pop industry, V’s clarification highlights the sensitivity of private communications becoming part of high-profile legal battles.
Sources: Daum | 마이데일리