Two South Koreans charged for blackmailing Spurs star Son
Two South Koreans have been charged with blackmail or attempted blackmail targeting Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-min, the prosecution said Wednesday, with one of them reportedly his ex-girlfriend.
The suspects -- a woman in her 20s surnamed Yang and a man in his 40s surnamed Yong -- have been in custody since last month.
The two have now been 'formally charged and will stand trial while in custody', a spokesperson for the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office told AFP.
According to the Yonhap news agency and other local media, Yang is Son's ex-girlfriend and allegedly extorted 300 million won ($219,000) from him by sending a foetal ultrasound image and threatening to go public with claims that she was pregnant with his child last year.
It remains unclear whether Yang -- who local media have speculated terminated the alleged pregnancy -- was actually carrying the star footballer's child.
Prosecutors believe Yang later attempted to extort an additional 70 million won from Son this year in collaboration with Yong, with whom she was in a romantic relationship, according to Yonhap.
The pair allegedly made the threats by saying they would expose the alleged pregnancy and abortion to the media.
Son refused to pay the 70 million won and filed a criminal complaint against the two.
Son, who also captains South Korea's national team, joined Tottenham from Bayer Leverkusen in 2015.
The South Korean forward has a year left on his Spurs contract and has been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia after helping the club end their 17-year trophy drought in last month's Europa League final.
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