• A woman was sentenced to four years for blackmailing footballer Son Heung-min, claiming she was pregnant with his child.
• The blackmail involved extorting 300 million won (approximately US$200,000) from Son.
• The accomplice received a two-year jail term for attempted blackmail.
• Son reported the blackmailers after they attempted to extort an additional 70 million won.
• Both defendants exploited Son's celebrity status to orchestrate their crime.

A South Korean court sentenced a woman to four years in prison for blackmailing football star Son Heung-min. The woman, surnamed Yang, extorted 300 million won (approximately US$200,000) from Son by threatening to go public with claims of being pregnant with his child, which she reportedly did not verify, according to SCMP and Channel News Asia.

Yang was described as taking "extreme measures" to tarnish Son's reputation, with the presiding judge highlighting that her actions caused significant psychological distress to the footballer. Her accomplice, surnamed Yong, received a two-year sentence for attempted blackmail, having threatened Son multiple times during the extortion process, as reported by BBC.

The court found that Yang used the money for luxury items and, when attempting to extort an additional 70 million won this year, it prompted Son to inform the authorities, leading to their arrest. Their efforts were deemed an abuse of Son's status as a public figure amid substantial media coverage of the case, according to Channel News Asia and SCMP.

During the trial, it was noted that Yang's claims of being pregnant were inconsistent, leading the court to doubt her assertions. This incident has added to Son's notable public profile, particularly following his transition to Major League Soccer, where he became the second-highest paid player, according to BBC and Channel News Asia.