Min Hee-jin refutes NewJeans tampering claims, citing external manipulation and family involvement in stock market disruptions.
January/28/2026 14:42
Former ADOR representative Min Hee-jin refuted allegations of tampering regarding NewJeans (the act of contacting other agencies before the contract period ends). Kim Seon-woong, the lawyer from the legal firm Jiam representing Min Hee-jin, held an emergency press conference today (28th) in a certain location in Jongno, Seoul. On this day, Min Hee-jin did not attend the press conference. Regarding this, lawyer Kim explained, "There are problematic parts with the families of NewJeans. Recently, I heard stories about family relationships and was quite shocked, making it difficult to attend." Lawyer Kim stated, "There is no responsibility for NewJeans' tampering. Rather, there are forces that reverse-utilize it, which have been used to disrupt the stock market," and added, "Especially since one of the members' families was involved, we could not respond appropriately at the time. The various recent events prompted the holding of this press conference." He continued, "Min Hee-jin has been sued for damages by ADOR. The content is that it separated the members from ADOR and infringed on ADOR's management rights," and explained, "Min Hee-jin believed that the relationship with ADOR was organized and that the NewJeans members would return to ADOR, so he thought they would do their best from each position." Lawyer Kim stated, "However, ADOR only terminated the contract with Daniel and filed a damages lawsuit. Concerns arose that this might be to dismantle the complete NewJeans, and attempts to use the members and families in the dispute between Min Hee-jin and HYBE's shareholders emerged, necessitating the clarification of a minimum position, which led to the press conference." He also mentioned, "Min Hee-jin learned that the tampering was a conspiracy involving one of the NewJeans members' families and specific corporate individuals for stock price manipulation and 'collusion to disrupt the stock market.' Evidence was even discovered that forces disrupting the stock market used Min Hee-jin and NewJeans members as a means to gain profit." He claimed, "This is seen as a national fraud scheme conducted by the family of a NewJeans member and specific corporate individuals to inflate stock prices." He continued, "Min Hee-jin attempted to reach an agreement with HYBE, prepared to relinquish all rights under the shareholder agreement for the return and restart of NewJeans. During this process, a family member of a member who has connections with HYBE's core management exploited Min Hee-jin's situation, planned the tampering of NewJeans, and brought in forces to disrupt the stock market, which is the essence of the so-called 'NewJeans tampering.'" Prior to this, ADOR recently announced the return of members Hae-rin, Hae-in, and Ha-ni. However, discussions are ongoing with Min-ji, and Daniel has been notified of the termination of his exclusive contract. ADOR has filed a damages and penalty lawsuit against Daniel, one of his family members, and former representative Min Hee-jin for an amount of 43.1 billion won (approximately 4.3 billion yen).
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