Kim Sae Ron’s family has accused her former management of scamming her mother through unusually high hospital bills, presenting receipts and medical records to support their claims. The family denies allegations of neglecting Kim Sae Ron and suspects foul play by her former agency and manager.
On March 25, 2025, the family of the late actress Kim Sae Ron spoke out through Kwon Young Chan, the head of the Korea Celebrity Suicide Prevention Association, to address recent controversies surrounding her death and her former management. In a detailed interview with No Cut News, Kwon denied claims made by Kim Sae Ron’s ex-boyfriend, known as “K,” who alleged that her family had not cared for her during her struggles. Kwon firmly refuted these accusations, questioning the credibility of someone who had only dated her for a year.
Receipt from hospital. | NoCut News
During the interview, Kwon presented a hospital bill receipt to support the family’s suspicions that Kim Sae Ron’s former agency and manager had attempted to scam her mother out of money. The receipt was related to an emergency surgery that Kim Sae Ron underwent, for which her former agency reportedly paid ₩5.00 million KRW (approximately $3,410 USD). However, critics have raised concerns about the unusually high cost, especially since Kim Sae Ron was listed as a “100% insurance-covered” patient, meaning most of her medical treatments should have been covered by insurance.
Medical records issued under Kim Sae Ron’s new legal name, “Kim Ah Im,” confirm her hospital admission but lack a detailed breakdown of the charges. Kwon explained that for patients with full insurance, even urgent procedures like sutures or emergency wrist treatments typically cost between ₩200,000 KRW (about $136 USD) and ₩400,000 KRW (about $273 USD). At most, non-insurance procedures at a plastic surgery clinic would cost between ₩1.00 million KRW (about $682 USD) and ₩2.00 million KRW (about $1,360 USD). The total amount paid, ₩5.40 million KRW (about $3,680 USD), without itemized charges, has raised suspicions of a shady practice known as “card-kkang,” where credit card cash loans are disguised as product purchases.
Kwon continued to claim that while the payments were made with the agency CEO’s credit card, an investigation with the hospital found that a part of the ₩5.00 million KRW (about $3,410 USD) was charged to Kim Sae Ron’s mother’s personal credit card. The hospital staff also allegedly voiced that the person who brought the cards in for payment came back to retrieve leftover funds. This implies that Kim Sae Ron’s mother had footed a part of the bill, resulting in extra money which was collected as a refund by the agency’s staff.
The family has been trying to reach Kim Sae Ron’s former manager, who was also involved in the controversial voice recordings about her marriage. Kwon expressed suspicions about the manager’s role, stating:
We tried to ask where the ₩5.40 million KRW (about $3,680 USD) was really spent, but we can’t reach him. He was extremely close to Kim Sae Ron, even helping her with all her meals. But every time she tried to make a comeback, personal details kept leaking. Then Lee Jin Ho would upload videos spreading unverified claims about her private life, fueling public negativity. It’s hard not to suspect that [the manager] may have been the source of those leaks.
Kwon also addressed Kim Sae Ron’s relationship with her mother, noting its complexity. Her mother quit her job to manage Kim Sae Ron’s career from her child acting days and opposed both her move to the agency Gold Medalist and her relationship with actor Kim Soo-hyun. Kwon remarked:
Her mother quit her job to act as her manager from her child acting days. She opposed both the move to the agency Gold Medalist and Kim’s relationship with Kim Soo-hyun. That might have made it hard for Kim to open up when things went badly. Still, they had a love-hate relationship that spanned over 25 years.
The family’s statements aim to clarify the situation and counter claims that they neglected Kim Sae Ron, while shedding light on the alleged financial misconduct by her former management. This article is part of our coverage of Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Sae Ron’s relationship. You can read more and view the entire timeline on our dedicated page.
