Hong Seobeom and Jo Gapkyung's Son Accused of Affair With Female Teacher During Wife's Pregnancy... Court Orders 30 Million Won in Damages

Hong Seobeom and Jo Gapkyung's Son Faces Controversy Over Affair and Unpaid Child Support

The court has determined that the marriage between singer Hong Seobeom and Jo Gapkyung's son ended in breakdown due to his extramarital affair during the marriage.

According to legal sources on March 26, the Daejeon Family Court ruled partially in favor of Plaintiff A, the ex-wife of Hong, the second son of Hong Seobeom and Jo Gapkyung, in a damages lawsuit filed in September last year. The court ordered Hong to pay A a consolation payment of 30 million won, as well as monthly child support of 800,000 won.

Singer Jo Gapkyung (left in photo) and her husband Hong Seobeom. MBC's "They're Grown Up but Won't Leave"

Plaintiff A, who had initially demanded 100 million won in damages and monthly child support of 1.1 million won, appealed the ruling. It is also reported that A filed a separate damages suit against the woman involved in the affair and obtained a judgment ordering her to pay 20 million won.

According to the judgment, A met Hong, a temporary physical education teacher at a high school, through an acquaintance in August 2021 and started dating him. Around March 2022, they began living together in Daejeon. The couple held their wedding in February 2024, and the following month, A became pregnant.

"Affair One Month After Wife Became Pregnant"

However, A discovered that just one month into her pregnancy, Hong was having an affair with B, another temporary teacher at the same school. When A contacted B and demanded that she stop seeing Hong, Hong packed his belongings and left home in June of that year.

In July of the same year, A arranged a meeting with both Hong and B at a cafe in Daejeon to talk. During questioning by A, B admitted, "It's not as though I met Hong every day," but confessed, "We did have sexual relations when we met."

"Claimed No Misconduct and Marriage Was Already Broken... But"

In court, Hong argued, "I did not engage in any misconduct, and even if I did, the marriage was already irreparably broken." However, this claim was not accepted. The court stated, "Given that Hong was making late-night phone calls with B and going out for drinks or to the movies with her from early April 2024, it is clear that A suffered emotional distress," adding, "It was Hong's fault, through his relationship with B, that the marriage ended in breakdown."

A claims she informed her parents-in-law, Hong Seobeom and Jo Gapkyung, multiple times about Hong's affair, but both of them reportedly turned a blind eye. A also asserted that, despite the court order, Hong has yet to pay any child support.

Hong Seobeom Responds: "Child Support Payment Withheld on Lawyer's Advice"

In relation to this, on March 24, Hong Seobeom appeared on the YouTube channel "Garo Sero Research Institute" and stated, "Watching my son's marriage and divorce lawsuit processes, I felt truly heartbroken and scolded and admonished him many times. But since romantic relationships and divorces among adults are not matters that I should interfere with, I quietly observed, hoping the situation would be resolved amicably."

He continued, "To clarify the facts, after the first trial, my son paid 20 million won out of the 30 million won in consolation payment and was about to pay child support when the opposing party filed an appeal. My son's lawyer advised him to withhold child support until the proceedings concluded, so we are waiting until a final ruling is made." He argued, "We only withheld the child support on the lawyer's advice, but people are portraying my son as someone who didn't pay the 30 million won at all, making him out to be a coward, which is not true."

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