The Full Story Behind Lee Seung Gi And Lee Da In’s Controversial Relationship

He was scammed but now marrying into a “scammer family.”
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Tegan Sweeting
Tegan Sweeting

On April 12, 2023, Lee Seung Gi shared in a personal Instagram statement that his parents-in-law, Lee Hong Heon and Kyeon Mi Ri, are not responsible for the 2016 BotaBio stock manipulation case and that the in-laws have filed a complaint with the Media Arbitration Committee against the five South Korean media outlets that have reported aggressive misinformation about them. Read the full statement here.

Lee Seung Gi and Lee Da In are getting married, but their love story is not drama-free.

Lee Seung Gi
Lee Da In

On February 7, Lee Seung Gi announced in a handwritten letter via Instagram that he is marrying his girlfriend, actress Lee Da In. He stated, “This is the most important decision in my life,” while asking fans to support the couple’s new life together.

Hello, this is Lee Seung Gi.

It seems this year there are many reasons for me to write long letters.
Today, I would like to inform you of the most important decision in my life.

Lee Da In, the woman that I love, and I have decided to transition from lovers to ‘newlyweds.’

She accepted my proposal, and we received our blessings.
I am announcing this to you with joy in my heart from having someone to be responsible for.

She has a heart of gold, and she’s full of love. She is someone I want on my side forever.

I would like to share my happiness, and in turmoil, I would like to overcome it while holding her hand.

I hope you’ll support our future together. We’ll continue to share what we have and live happily ever after

Thank you.

— Lee Seung Gi

Yet, many fans expressed their disappointment in the news. The reason is not what you might think.

Lee Seung Gi started dating Lee Da In three years ago after connecting through a common interest in golf. Since fans heard the news, they communicated their concerns.

After checking with Lee Da In herself, Lee Da In and Lee Seung Gi started meeting as industry co-workers around five or six months ago, grew feelings, and are carefully getting to know each other.

We ask for you to send them your support and affection so the two can continue meeting each other well.

— 9ATO Entertainment

Lee Da In (left) and Lee Seung Gi (right) on date

A Lee Seung Gi fan even rented a truck with a sign to protest the relationship. The sign on the truck states, “[Lee Da In’s family] had created too many victims.”

The “protest truck” parked in Lee Seung Gi’s residential neighborhood. | WikiTree

It’s okay if you didn’t know, we’ll inform you now. They have created too many victims.

— Lee Seung Gi’s Fan

The fan parked the vehicle outside Seung Gi’s residential neighborhood to communicate with him. An LED display flashed different messages.

The “protest truck” driving around Lee Seung Gi’s residential neighborhood. | WikiTree

Are you willing to destroy your 17-year-old career? A quick decision must be made.

— Lee Seung Gi’s Fan

The “protest truck” parked in Lee Seung Gi’s residential neighborhood. | WikiTree

We have protected you for the past 17 years. It is now your turn to protect Airens (Lee Seung Gi’s fandom).

— Lee Seung Gi’s Fan

The negative response to the couple is due to the actress’ family. They have had a “criminal history” for years.

Lee Da In, like Lee Seung Gi, is an actor. Her family, too, contains famous actresses besides herself. Her mother is South Korean veteran actress Kyeon Mi Ri, and her older sister is actress Lee Yoo Bi.

Lee Da In’s mother and actress Kyeon Mi Ri | The Daily Sports
Lee Yoo Bi in “Yumi’s Cells”

However, her stepfather is the family member that has warranted the backlash from fans.

Lee Da In’s stepfather is Lee Hong Heon. He married her mother, Kyeon Mi Ri, back in 1998. He was also previously charged with stock manipulation and insider trading on two different occasions.

Lee Da In’s stepfather, Lee Hong Heon | Tistory

In both 2011 and 2016, Lee Hong Heon was arrested for manipulating KOSDAQ‘s stock prices. Reportedly, he even used his wife’s name and status to recruit investors for the company. Once he acquired the investors, Lee Hong Heon inflated the company’s shares’ cost. Through this manipulation, he succeeded in creating a massive gain for himself. The company shares were then sold for investors to “cash in” their profit. Naturally, this sparked havoc for all the other stockholders.

@priscillakwon

WHY Koreans do NOT support Lee seung gi dating. #seoul #dispatch

♬ See You Again (Piano Arrangement) – Alexandre Pachabezian

According to Yonhap News, Lee Hong Heon reportedly saw ₩2.30 billion KRW (about $2.06 million USD) in profits, thanks to his stock manipulation scheme.

An anonymous netizen additionally claimed that Lee Hong Heon’s stock manipulation directly impacted families’ downfalls. The netizen’s relative, along with thousands of people, allegedly experienced tragic loss, resulting in bankruptcy. They acknowledged that their relative’s investment had been voluntary, but they claimed that Lee Hong Heon’s manipulation certainly contributed to the significant negative outcome. According to the netizen, Lee Hong Heon nor Kyeon Mi Ri have publicly apologized for the situation or at least to the “victims” rather, Lee Da In’s parents are said to have “made themselves the victims and went on to file lawsuits against the actual victims.”

| theqoo
  • “Oh my god there are a lot of victims. Please, I hope these types of people stop appearing on broadcasted programs.”
  • “He probably found it a sweet deal if he can rack up the wealth by serving a couple of years in jail. He’s out and living his best life now, damn.”
  • “The estimated losses suffered by the manipulation(s) is ₩26.0 billion KRW (about $23.3 million USD) [from the first manipulation] and between ₩2.00 trillion KRW (about $1.79 billion USD) to ₩4.00 trillion KRW (about $3.58 billion USD) [from the second manipulation]… I had no idea it was such a massive problem.”
  • “There are 350,000+ victims, but they have been able to remain actresses during this time? All while showing off their rooms and living rooms?”
  • “Seriously, they shouldn’t be allowed on television.”
  • “350,000+ victims!!! Holy crap.”
  • “Oh my gosh… Lee Seung Gi probably dated her knowing all of this. It really is disappointing. His good image is crumbling.”
  • “If there really are that many victims, Kyeon Mi Ri and Lee Da In should not be allowed on any broadcasts.”

Fans felt Seung Gi’s involvement with the family contradicted his clean image. He has also been known to be charitable.

Despite the concerns, Lee Seung Gi has remained in a committed relationship. His official fandom also released a letter showing support for his relationship with Lee Da In.

Firstly, we would like to announce that as longtime fans of Lee Seung Gi, we respect his decision and will continue to support his future promotions without any changes.

While some fans have been expressing their concerns at his sudden dating news, we would like to state that we believe that they will come to understand Lee Seung Gi’s sincerity overtime.

— Lee Seung Gi’s DC Fan Gallery

Yet, Lee Seung Gi himself was scammed. In 2022, he realized that his company, HOOK Entertainment, had been withholding accurate payments and accounting from him. In December, he filed a lawsuit against CEO Kwon Jin Young and two other company directors.

Hello. This is Lee Seung Gi’s legal representative.

Lee Seung Gi filed his lawsuit against HOOK Entertainment’s CEO Kwon Jin Young, and its directors today at the Seoul Central District Police Station.

Just as it has been reported in the press a few times already, HOOK Entertainment has been hiding the truth about the profits from Lee Seung Gi’s music for the past 18 years and did not pay him for it. Regarding this, we have sued Hook Entertainment’s CEO Kwon Jin Young, and the executive directors for violating the act for specific economic crimes (occupational embezzlement) and specific economic crimes (fraud).

In addition, we found out through a recent tip-off that the current and previous directors of HOOK Entertainment had fooled Lee Seung Gi and embezzled a portion of his fees as a CF model. He thought that about 10% of his fees as a model for a few years was provided to the advertisement company as “agency fees,” but in truth, the previous and current directors had not given it to the advertisement company and shared a portion amongst themselves instead.

It was only when Lee Seung Gi brought this up that HOOK Entertainment admitted the truth and on December 16, 2022, they provided him with the delayed payments of about ₩630 million KRW (about $492,000 USD) including for his CFs and music. Regarding these crimes, our legal team has sued three people, CEO Kwon Jin Young and the current and previous directors, for fraud and embezzlement.

Regarding the music payments, Lee Seung Gi has never agreed to settle with HOOK Entertainment. Despite this, on December 16, 2022, HOOK Entertainment said that they filed a lawsuit to confirm the absence of debt after unilaterally transferring about ₩4.81 billion KRW (about $3.76 million USD) without notifying him. Lee Seung Gi first found out about this through media reports and has not received any notification about the lawsuit.

The above settlement amount remitted unilaterally by HOOK Entertainment is also different from that of the one that Lee Seung Gi is aware of. He will hence respond to the claim for the non-existence of debt and file a counterclaim to claim unpaid fees for music and damages for their illegal activities.

Lee Seung Gi has decided that similar victims should not occur any further and will be legally suing HOOK Entedrtainment’s CEO Kwon Jin Young and the previous and current directors just as we have explained earlier. We will do our best so that no similar victims will occur, unveiling the accurate truth regarding this matter through the trial.

Thank you.

— Lee Seung Gi’s legal team

So, netizens cannot help but find it ironic that after being horribly scammed, he is now marrying into a “scammer family.”

| theqoo
  • “My pain will just be my own… This is such a good line.”
  • “Goodbye.”
  • “As a celebrity, Lee Seung Gi himself also probably went through lots but seems like he could hold it together because he had a lover. Rather than criticizing him for the problems of his in-laws, as his fan, I’ll be happy for him.”
  • “Well, I felt like it was a pity for a moment but… Ultimately…”
  • “There’s always a reason if people keep telling you no…”
  • “His in-laws are huge financial scammers…”

Still, some fans choose to trust and support Seung Gi, wishing him the best in his marriage.

Additionally, rumors have circulated that the couple is marrying due to pregnancy. According to an OSEN News report, Lee Seung Gi’s representative confirmed their engagement but stated, “There is no premarital pregnancy.” Read more below.

Lee Seung Gi’s Agency Addresses Pregnancy Rumors Amid Wedding Announcement

Lee Seung Gi

Korean Netizens React To News Of Lee Da In And Lee Seung Gi’s Pregnancy

Lee Seung Gi Sparks Criticism From US Fans, Cancels New York Concert Amid Growing Backlash

Lee Seung Gi Deletes Every Single Post From His Social Media — His Agency Responds To The Confusion

From Being Manipulated By His Company, To The Truth About His Wife’s Family’s Scandal — Lee Seung Gi Tells All In A Lengthy Statement

See more Lee Seung Gi

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