Ex-ADOR CEO referred to prosecution for defamation over Illit plagiarism remarks
SEOUL, Oct. 14 (Yonhap) -- Police have referred former ADOR chief executive Min ...
Min Hee-jin, the former CEO of Ador, a subsidiary of HYBE, has been referred to prosecutors on suspicion of defamation and obstructing business. The Yongsan Police Station in Seoul made this decision on October 1st, based on Min's claims that HYBE's girl group, Illit, had plagiarized NewJeans, a group she had previously nurtured. The police believe Min spread these false claims with the intent to harm HYBE and Illit's parent company, Belift Lab.
Two former Ador vice presidents were also referred to prosecutors for the same allegations. Min first brought up these accusations in April 2024, stating that Illit had copied NewJeans' debut strategy, choreography, and visual concept. Belift Lab filed a criminal complaint against Min shortly after.
Judges handling these disputes have so far dismissed Min's plagiarism claims. In March 2025, a court ruled on Ador's request to confirm its status as NewJeans' agency, concluding that it was hard to consider Illit's concept a copy of NewJeans'. In October 2025, a court that upheld NewJeans' exclusive contracts with Ador found similarities in the groups' internal documents.
Written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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