Jo Jaebeom, who leaked 'Shim Seokhee text messages,' sent to prosecution on charges of 'defamation'

Former national short track speed skating athlete Shim Seok-hee and former national coach Cho Jae-beom. /Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] The police have sent former national short track coach Jo Jae-beom (42) and his family to the prosecution on charges of leaking text messages of former national short track athlete Shim Seok-hee (26).

On the 17th, the Women and Youth Crime Investigation Unit of the Gyeonggi Southern Provincial Police Agency announced that Jo and others were handed over to the prosecution on the 4th on charges of defamation. They are accused of leaking private text messages exchanged between Shim and Coach A around the time of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, damaging Shim's reputation.

Last October, a media outlet released Shim's text messages, which included allegations of intentional collision in the 1000M final at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics and disparaging remarks about teammates, sparking controversy.

The text messages containing allegations such as Shim's "disparagement of teammates and intentional collision" were reportedly included in a "defense counsel opinion letter" submitted to the court by Jo's side, who was on trial for sexual crimes committed against Shim over more than three years.

As the controversy grew after the media disclosure of these contents, the police launched an independent investigation, identifying the IP address and conducting a search and seizure at the home of Jo's sister and her husband in Namyangju City last October, among other investigations.

At the time, the police explained, "No complaints or accusations related to this case have been filed, but we initiated an independent investigation on charges of defamation," adding, "While identifying the circumstances under which Shim's text messages were leaked and reported, we pinpointed the IP address of the former coach Jo's sister's residence."

The Korea Skating Union imposed a "two-month suspension of national team qualification" on Shim on December 21 last year regarding the disparagement of teammates. Due to this disciplinary action, Shim was unable to participate as a national team athlete until the 20th and missed the chance to compete in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

The Korea Skating Union also conducted an investigation into the intentional collision allegations but excluded it from the disciplinary reasons, stating, "The exact intent could not be confirmed."

Meanwhile, Jo was sentenced to 13 years in prison on December 10 last year for sexual crimes against Shim and is currently serving his sentence.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.