Kim Seung-woo Theft Complaint Hinges on One 30 Million Won Transfer

Actor Kim Seung-woo does not deny taking 22 million won in cash and checks from an acquaintance's wallet in 2021. His side says it was a prank and that he repaid more than that amount; the accuser says he never got it back. The case now turns on what a 30 million won transfer, sent two days later, actually was.

The complaint was filed in July at Seoul's Gangnam Police Station by a man identified only as A. According to A, the incident took place on October 29, 2021, at a hostess bar in Cheongdam-dong, where he was drinking with Kim, members of the production team of the drama The Driver, and actors. A says he stepped away briefly, and Kim took 22 million won in cash and checks from the wallet in his bag. A also says female staff in the room saw Kim take the money, and that Kim had previously taken cash from his wallet several times to use as tips, despite repeated warnings.

Kim's account: a joke, then repayment

Kim's legal representative acknowledges the act but rejects the label of theft. The money was hidden playfully in front of several people, they say, and returned. They add that the day after the incident Kim and A had planned to play golf, that A did not come to pick him up, and that Kim later repaid an amount larger than the sum in question.

Kim's side also stresses that the relationship continued. They say the two remained close, like brothers, and that Kim sent A's family living expenses every month after A was imprisoned. A is reportedly serving a sentence at Gwangju Prison for an economic crime. Kim's side suggests the complaint stems from a faulty memory on A's part, and says it has submitted bank transfer records and a written statement to investigators. It calls A's version incorrect information and has said it will respond firmly to false claims.

The transfer at the center

The disputed figure is a 30 million won transfer from Kim to A on October 31, two days after the incident. Kim's side presents it as repayment. A says it was the agreed 10% profit on a 300 million won investment, and that the combined 330 million won received around October 31 and November 1 matches the principal plus that return exactly. In A's telling, if the stolen money had also been returned, the total would have been 352 million won. A also says the money Kim sent was repayment of a personal loan, not the return of stolen cash.

Both sides therefore read the same bank record in opposite ways: proof of repayment for one, investment profit for the other. Investigators are expected to weigh Kim's intent at the table alongside the nature of that money, and A, a convicted party now serving time, is also the one whose recollection Kim's side questions.

Kim's agency, Great Actors, confirmed that he has been named in a complaint and said it is working to establish the facts. Gangnam Police said on November 5 that the case is under investigation. Kim is currently hosting the TV Chosun variety show Our Neighborhood Health King, which premiered on the 9th.