Were Son Heung-min’s alleged blackmailer’s rights properly protected?

A controversy has emerged in South Korea over whether police adequately protected the rights of a woman accused of attempting to blackmail soccer star Son Heung-min over a pregnancy, after she appeared before the media without the usual measures of identity concealment typically granted to criminal suspects.

Scenes of the female suspect being escorted to a court hearing on her arrest warrant on Saturday, flanked by two police officers, her wrists wrapped in clothing to conceal handcuffs, and wearing only a face mask, were widely covered by the media.

The woman, identified only as being in her 20s with the family name Yang, is one of two individuals accused of attempting to extort the Tottenham Hotspur star.

On the courthouse photo line, she briefly tried to shield her face with a file folder, but officers removed it, leaving her exposed to press cameras with just the mask.

The male suspect — identified as Yong, a man in his 40s — appeared wearing both a face mask and a cap, effectively concealing his identity from view.

This disparity touched off a wave of criticism that the police failed to properly protect Yang's identity, despite the legal presumption of innocence. It is customary in South Korea for most suspects to cover their faces as much as possible during public appearances to maintain privacy.

After Saturday's public appearance, unblurred photos of Yang have been circulating on social media over the weekend, prompting some users to attempt to uncover her identity.

The National Police Agency's regulation states that a suspect's face shall not be revealed to the public to protect their human rights, based on a revision made in October of 2005 after a recommendation by the National Human Rights Commission.

Exceptions apply only in cases involving particularly heinous crimes — such as murder, insurrection, sex crimes, and offenses against minors — where a suspect’s identity may be disclosed following a formal review by a police committee.

But police officials told local media that Yang had chosen her own clothing before appearing in front of the press. They said while the male suspect requested a cap, she did not and she changed into the attire of her own choosing before heading to the court.

It was also reported that the folder she used in an attempt to hide her face contained police documents related to the warrant hearing, which she took without the officials’ permission.

The pair are the former girlfriend of Son and her current boyfriend, and are accused of attempting to extort 70 million won ($50,000) from Son in March. This was in exchange of keeping quiet about Yang's alleged pregnancy with Son's child and her subsequent abortion.

The soccer star had reportedly paid her 300 million won in June 2024 for not revealing the pregnancy. Son himself has confirmed that the two had dated in the past, but claimed that they broke up “a long time ago.”

It is unclear whether Yang had actually been pregnant with Son's child. Son claimed that he was threatened with fake ultrasound images of the child, but police found hospital records confirming that the woman had indeed been pregnant and had an abortion.

Yong has sent several emails to media outlets claiming that he has evidence proving Son had coerced the abortion. He said that he discovered photos of a sizeable transaction and agreement of nondisclosure, which supposedly included a 3 billion won penalty upon breach of contract.

The extortion probe against the pair will be conducted regardless of whether or not Son coerced the abortion, or if the child was actually his.