Dispatch has interviewed 20 of Nam Joo Hyuk‘s high school classmates and teachers, all of whom expressed that Nam Joo Hyuk was a model student.
Dispatch has done a deep dive into the allegations made against Nam Joo Hyuk, stating that when such claims of a celebrity’s past are made, the credibility of the claim needs to be verified through an interview with the informant. However, many of these claims are only statements with little physical evidence. In certain cases where a School Violence Committee is held, there will be sufficient evidence to support the informant’s claims. Other records such as hospital records for treatment are also quite valid. However, if the only evidence is a picture of a yearbook, the claims aren’t as sound. Thus, the specifics of the claims must be thoroughly investigated.
This is the case for Nam Joo Hyuk, who has been accused of school violence by two individuals who revealed their cases with media outlets The Days News and Sports Kyunghyang. Such bullying included throwing mechanical pencil lead, ordering the individual to be a “bread shuttle”, and physical violence.
Dispatch contacted reporter Lee Seon Myeong, who wrote the article on Sports Kyunghyang and attempted to get in contact with the informant, but their request was not reciprocated. Dispatch was simply told “the informant’s statement is correct,” and nothing could be confirmed. Dispatch simply wanted to try to confirm the credibility of the informant’s claims because Dispatch’s discovery of Nam Joo Hyuk’s high school days is very different from the claims the informants made.
Of course, it’s standard that any report regarding school violence should not just be immediately dismissed as fake, but cross-checking the facts is necessary to determine the validity of the report. Dispatch has decided to cross check the stories shared by The Days News and Sports Kyunghyang. Dispatch has done this by interviewing 20 individuals who were connected to Nam Joo Hyuk during high school. Those 20 individuals are as follows:
- Seo Seok Hoon, 10th grade classmate
- Lee [name redacted], 10th grade classmate
- Shin [name redacted], 10th grade classmate
- Park [name redacted], 11th grade classmate
- H [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate
- L [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate
- Shin [name redacted], 12th grade classmate
- S1 [name redacted], 12th grade classmate
- S2 [name redacted], 12th grade classmate
- Kim [name redacted], 12th grade classmate
- Jo Boo Hyeong, alumnus
- Lee [name redacted], alumnus
- Park [name redacted], alumnus
- Son [name redacted], alumnus
- Y1 [name redacted], alumnus
- Y2 [name redacted], alumnus
- J [name redacted], alumnus
- H [name redacted], alumnus
- Park Tae Gyu, 10th grade homeroom teacher
- Hong Seong Man, 12th grade homeroom teacher
Claim #1 – Nam Joo Hyuk was an Iljin (school bully)
One of the informants claimed that Nam Joo Hyuk was a bully at school alongside his friends, causing the informant to live a lonely school life. This point was refuted by 10 people.
How on earth should one go to school? Isn’t that how most people’s school life is?
Is it a problem to hang out with friends? Students who are good at studying tend to gather together, those who like sports gather together. It’s just hanging out with friends who have the same interests.
I was like that, Nam Joo Hyuk was also like that.
— Shin [name redacted], 12th grade classmate
S1 [name redacted], 12th grade classmate and Shin [name redacted], 10th grade classmate stated that the informant didn’t know what the vibe and atmosphere at Suil High School was in 2012. Two other classmates who spent both 11th and 12th grade with Nam Joo Hyuk echoed the same opinion.
Our school at the time had very severe punishments. It was extremely strict. There was never the idea that there was a group of bullies at school. What kind of friend would bully someone consistently? If the teachers heard about it, things at school would be crazy.
— H [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate, L [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate
Y1 [name redacted], alumnus, also stated there was no bullying at the school.
There was no culture of bullying at the school. It was a school where the person bullying would be treated as the weird one if they tried to create an atmosphere of bullying.
The alumni are asking that we step up and cooperate with the police investigation.
— Y1 [name redacted], alumnus
Seo Seok Hoon, 10th grade classmate, and Jo Boo Hyeong, alumnus, both decided to speak openly while revealing their identities.
I’m saying this because they really didn’t know what the school was like.
There may have been a group of people that thought a certain group at school were bullies.
Nam Joo Hyuk was not part of that group.
— Seo Seok Hoon, 10th grade classmate
Nam Joo Hyuk is not the type of person that will harass others. He liked sports. Nam Joo Hyuk would even laugh when his friends teased and joked around with him. He has a good personality, that’s right.
That’s why his friends liked him.
— Jo Boo Hyeong, alumnus
Lee [name redacted], 10th grade classmate shared what a typical day in Nam Joo Hyuk’s school life was once he became a model.
He used to say some random things since he was a model. All of his friends laughed. He went to modelling academy, enjoyed basketball, and slept a lot. The teachers trusted him a lot. There’s that sense of justice… haha.
— Lee [name redacted], 10th grade classmate
Regarding the trust from the teachers, Park Tae Gyu, 10th grade homeroom teacher, commented.
Nam Joo Hyuk was a student who would tell the others ‘hey guys, lets quiet down.’ He was the type to mediate when there was a fight, saying ‘let’s not fight anymore.’ I don’t know what kind of misunderstanding the informant has but Nam Joo Hyuk is not that kind of person (referring to a bully).
— Park Tae Gyu, 10th grade homeroom teacher
Claim #2 – The Bread Shuttle
A claim was made that Nam Joo Hyuk forced the informant to be their bread shuttle, which is a term for a student that is made to do orders from their bully.
The almuni from the school simply asked whether such a thing was real. H [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate, firmly stated that claims of a bread shuttle were a lie.
I believe I can firmly state that [the claims of a bread shuttle] are a lie.
I was so dumbfounded when I saw the report that I wrote directly onto the community post.
— H [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate
Shin [name redacted], 12th grade classmate shared that they would go get bread with Nam Joo Hyuk and enjoy it together.
I would always go to the snack bar with Nam Joo Hyuk to buy and eat breads. He didn’t ask someone to do it, that never happened. We would buy it ourselves from the store and eat it.
— Shin [name redacted], 12th grade classmate
L [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate, explained why Nam Joo Hyuk would go to the snack bar himself to buy his snacks.
We were divided into males and females. The snack bar was a place where we could see others. If Nam Joo Hyuk really ordered others as a bread shuttle? I’m sure the students would have stayed away from him because of the school’s atmosphere.
— L [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate
J [name redacted], alumnus, personally saw Nam Joo Hyuk during breaks at the snack bar.
Nam Joo Hyuk liked to visit the snack bar. We were in different classes but we met often during breaks. Of course, I don’t know everything, but ordering a bread shuttle? That rumor would have spread quickly at school and that person would become an outcast.
— J [name redacted], alumnus
S1 [name redacted], 12th grade classmate, made an assumption on the scenario the information may have twisted or witnessed.
Isn’t this the situation that the informant is talking about? Where Nam Joo Hyuk can ask someone to buy something for him from the snack bar while they are heading there? This is a common thing. And even Nam Joo Hyuk bought bread for someone who asked him to get them some.
— S1 [name redacted], 12th grade classmate
Claim #3 – Sparring
The second informant told Sports Kyunghyang that Nam Joo Hyuk would designate a sparring partner for them and make them fight. Nam Joo Hyuk and his group would create a ring around the two and watch them fight. 6 individuals refuted these claims.
L [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate, admitted that there was sparring at times at school, but denied Nam Joo Hyuk’s involvement.
This has nothing to do with Nam Joo Hyuk.
Honestly, does it even make sense to force sparring? Forcing a fight? I don’t remember things like that. We joked around with friends in the back of our classroom, we even imitated WWE.
— L [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate
Both S1 and S2, 12th grade classmates, echoed L’s statement.
Is the informant talking about wrestling?
Nam Joo Hyuk would playfully wrestle the other boys in the class. But he wasn’t in the back of the class. We’ve never heard of any stories of him sparring.
— S1 and S2, 12th grade classmates
Y1 [name redacted], alumnus had a similar memory relating to this.
The floor for the liberal arts class where Nam Joo Hyuk was and natural sciences class was different. Sometimes during break, I would go to the liberal arts class and the kids were playing wrestling games in the back of the class.
I don’t remember it to be forced, but more just the boys messing around.
— Y1 [name redacted], alumnus
Kim [name redacted], 12th grade classmate, recalled a fight involving two individuals, but Nam Joo Hyuk was not involved.
I remember a fight in the back of the classroom between “P” and a student nicknamed Rindaman because he was 190cm tall. The fight happened because the two kept arguing.
— Kim [name redacted], 12th grade classmate
Finally, H [name redacted], alumnus, witnessed the same fight with Nam Joo Hyuk not involved.
When I went to Nam Joo Hyuk’s classroom during break, I sometimes joked around with a few people in the back of the room. I saw “P” tell Rindaman to come out to fight, but that had nothing to do with Nam Joo Hyuk.
— H [name redacted], alumnus
Claim #4 – A Forced Payment
The second informant claimed that Nam Joo Hyuk would use their phone to guy games and in-game purchases on his personal account and then not paying back the money.
The individuals interviewed all pointed at “P” from the above fight case as the culprit, not Nam Joo Hyuk. “P” took their teacher’s cell phone and purchased multiple things using their teacher’s account.
Nam Joo Hyuk used someone else’s phone to purchase something? Rather, it was “P” who stole our teacher’s cell phone and got caught buying something. Our teacher scolded us during morning assembly, asking who used his phone to buy something.
— Park [name redacted], 11th grade classmate
Pay by cash through your phone? There’s an incident that comes to mind. It’s not about Nam Joo Hyuk, it’s “P”. “P” is a student that caused trouble in that boys class. There was a lot of fuss becuase he bought something using his teacher’s phone.
— Son [name redacted], alumnus
The main character in the cell phone payment case is “P”. The informant changed the person involved to be Nam Joo Hyuk. This has nothing to do with Nam Joo Hyuk. That’s why I think this is even more malicious.
— H [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate
Everyone knows about the cell phone payment case. Why did you put Nam Joo Hyuk’s name for something “P” did? “P” was in the same class as Nam Joo Hyuk in 10th grade. He would instigate arguments, saying things like ‘hey long-legged f***, eat a lot’ to Nam Joo Hyuk.
— Lee [name redacted], 10th grade classmate
At the time, Suil High School students had to turn in their cell phones to their homeroom teacher at the start of class. Park Tae Gyu, 10th grade homeroom teacher, confirmed this.
10 years ago, we had a system that you had to turn in your cell phone in the morning. If you didn’t turn it in, you would be in big trouble. If someone had two phones, we wouldn’t know… I wouldn’t risk it for a cell phone.
— Park Tae Gyu, 10th grade homeroom teacher
L [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate, also refuted the reference of forced data hotspot usage.
If you get caught using your cell phone during class, you’ll have it confiscated for a week. How can you use a hotspot when you have to turn it in every morning? Only the informant and Nam Joo Hyuk didn’t turn in their cell phones? It was a huge problem if you got caught.
— L [name redacted], 11th and 12th grade classmate
Claim #5 – Throwing mechanical pencil lead and cutting in line
Dispatch wanted to take a look at the claims made before reviewing the last claim. They noted that the first informant changed their story, initially claiming to have been bullied for six years before changing it to three years. One of their claims was that Nam Joo Hyuk would throw mechanical pencil lead at them from behind, but then changed their statement to say that the mechanical pencil lead was thrown by a different group of bullies.
The last claim Dispatch cross-checked is that Nam Joo Hyuk would cut in line for lunch, which was again denied.
Since it’s a boy’s class, they occasionally would fight to be the first ones to eat. Lunch time in the boy’s class is like a battlefield. It was always happening in my class too.
— Park [name redacted], alumnus
There wasn’t a cafeteria at the time. We would eat in the classroom. If you are the first to line up, you’re the first to eat. Most of the boys competed to be able to eat the fastest. I didn’t think this would constitute as school bullying…
— S1 [name redacted], 12th grade classmate
Cutting in line for school lunch? That’s vague. It was important to eat quickly in the boy’s class. For example, it was even more important when there was a class competition later. But it wasn’t an atmosphere where students would be kicked out of the line.
— S2 [name redacted], 12th grade classmate
Dispatch noted that if the informant was hurt by what happened at lunch, it is right for them to receive an apology. But the problem is that nobody knows who the informant is. As the first media outlet is remaining silent about the informant’s identity, Dispatch believes the two sides are going to have their first meeting with the police soon.
Closing Statements
Dispatch ended up meeting with 18 Suil High School alumni and two homeroom teachers. All 20 individuals agree that the alleged claims made by the informants never happened. However, it is important to note that these are counter-testimonies and cannot be accepted as hard evidence.
The closing statements were made by Nam Joo Hyuk’s 10th and 12th grade homeroom teachers. His 11th grade homeroom teacher is now retired and could not be contacted.
I’ll put my pride as a teacher on the line. Back then, it was a time of corporal punishment and even the female teachers had a rod used for punishment. Mothers would even create their own rods for punishment and give them to the teachers under the guise of hitting students to turn them into people. When I was teaching then, there was no such thing as school violence.
Please include these words in the article.
I saw a comment that this just doesn’t feel right for some reason. I felt the same way. Nam Joo Hyuk was a positive and enterprising child. He had a sense of justice. I liked that, but there were also times I did have to scold him. But there weren’t any kids who didn’t like Nam Joo Hyuk. He is not a bully. Feel free to include my testimony. That is how confident I am.
— Park Tae Gyu, 10th grade homeroom teacher
Nam Joo Hyuk? I remember him being nice, kind-hearted. He didn’t stand out too much… he was an active student in the proper way. I remember him being one of the cool male students that I taught. He helped his friends well. He wasn’t the best at studying but he was a student who received a lot of compliments about his character and personality.
Don’t judge a person’s life by a one-sided story.
If there was a downside to him, it was that he was late a lot. Each time that happened, the teachers would make him do the squat-walk as punishment, but he never felt that it was unfair or disobeyed, and followed instructions well. What kind of bully does that? I’m angry at the spread of maliciously false information. It’s right to take responsibility if you do something wrong, but it’s wrong to attempt to bury someone with false information.
— Hong Seong Man, 12th grade homeroom teacher
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