Min Hee-jin Referred to Prosecutors Over ILLIT-NewJeans Plagiarism Claim: Timeline, Both Sides and What's Next (Oct 2026)

TL;DR: On 14 Oct 2026, Yonhap, Newsis and other outlets reported that Seoul Yongsan Police Station had referred former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin to prosecutors on 1 Oct on charges of defamation and obstruction of business. The case comes from her April 2024 claim that HYBE's girl group ILLIT copied NewJeans. Police also referred two former ADOR vice presidents, surnamed Lee and Shin. A referral is not an indictment or a conviction. Prosecutors now decide whether to charge anyone. Min's side rejects the police findings.

What police concluded

According to reports by Yonhap, Newsis and SBS, police found that Min spread false information to slander HYBE and Belift Lab, ILLIT's label, even though ILLIT had not plagiarized NewJeans. The view in that last clause belongs to the investigators. No court has ruled on the criminal charges. ChosunBiz reports that the defamation charge falls under the Information and Communications Network Act. Police also found that the same charges applied to the ADOR statement released before the press conference, so they referred former vice presidents Lee and Shin on the same day.

Timeline

• April 2024: According to SBS, ADOR put out a statement three days before the press conference alleging that ILLIT copied NewJeans. At an emergency press conference, Min then claimed that ILLIT had copied NewJeans' audition poster, hanbok photo shoot concept, debut method and choreography.
• May 2024: Belift Lab said its artists' work was being disparaged by "reckless speculation and false information" (SBS) and filed a criminal complaint against Min.
• March 2025: In ADOR's injunction case against the NewJeans members, the court said it was difficult to view ILLIT's concept as plagiarizing NewJeans. It also said it was unclear whether NewJeans' concept is protected intellectual property at all (SBS, Newsis).
• October 2025: In the main lawsuit over the validity of NewJeans' exclusive contract, the court said there were some similarities in planning documents and photo shoots but that they were not enough to conclude that ILLIT copied NewJeans' concept (SBS).
• 1 Oct 2026: Yongsan Police Station referred Min, Lee and Shin to prosecutors.
• 14 Oct 2026: The referral became public, and Min's side issued a rebuttal the same day.

Min's side responds

In a statement reported by ChosunBiz and Seoul Economic Daily, Min's side said the referral "is only a provisional judgment by an investigative body, not a prosecution's indictment or a court's finding." Her side said Belift Lab had cited the referral as grounds to reopen arguments in a related case.

According to Seoul Economic Daily, her side made two more points:

• Issues that were already rejected in the civil cases are being brought up again in a criminal case.
• In an earlier complaint filed by HYBE, the same police station treated Min's objections as part of her management duties based on creative ethics and did not refer that case. Her side says the new decision contradicts that earlier finding.

What's at stake

• For Min: If prosecutors indict her, she would face a criminal trial on defamation and obstruction of business. They could also decline to prosecute.
• For HYBE and Belift Lab: The police view backs their position that the plagiarism claim was false. Reports say Belift Lab is already using the referral in related proceedings.
• For the courts: The two civil rulings did not accept the plagiarism claim. A criminal court would decide a different question: whether Min's statements were knowingly false and harmed the companies.

What happens next

Prosecutors will review the police file. They can indict, decline to prosecute, or order more investigation. As of 14 Oct 2026, no prosecution decision had been reported. Min and the two former vice presidents should be presumed innocent unless a court finds otherwise.

Sources: Yonhap, Newsis, SBS, ChosunBiz and Seoul Economic Daily (all 14 Oct 2026).

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