File photo of former Korean Air executive Cho Hyun-ah. Photo: AP
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https://scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/2144696/sister-korean-air-nut-rager-wanted-juice-spraying-charges East Asia
Sister of Korean Air ‘nut rager’ wanted on juice-spraying charges
Seoul police seek warrant for arrest of airline heiress Cho Hyun-min, who is accused of throwing her drink over an advertising executive
Former Korean Air CEO Cho Hyun-min is accused of throwing juice over an advertising executive during a meeting in June last year. Photo: EPA
South Korean police on Friday sought a warrant to arrest a Korean Air heiress for allegedly spraying fruit juice over a business associate, as hundreds of employees prepared to rally against the firm’s increasingly controversial controlling family.
The Gangseo police station in Seoul said Cho Hyun-min, the daughter of Hanjin Group and Korean Air chairman Cho Yang-ho, was accused of assault and obstruction of business.
Cho is the sister of Cho Hyun-ah, who made global headlines in 2014 for forcing two Korean Air flight attendants to kneel and beg for forgiveness after she was served macadamia nuts in a bag instead of a bowl.
She ordered the Seoul-bound flight back to the gate so one of them could be ejected in an incident quickly dubbed “nut rage”.
Since the fruit juice accusations against her younger sister emerged, hundreds of Korean Air staff have joined an online chat room to complain about more alleged Cho family misdeeds against employees.
Police said last week they were investigating allegations that the sisters’ mother Lee Myung-hee abused workers verbally and physically.
The series of accusations have put the family among the country’s most notorious super-wealthy.
The father of the women, Korean Air Lines Chairman Cho Yang-ho, arriving to testify at the second court hearing of his daughter Cho Hyun-ah, at a Seoul court in January 2015. Photo: Reuters
Hundreds of former and current employees of the country’s flag carrier were expected to participate in a rally against the family on Friday, covering their faces with masks or sunglasses in case the company tries to track them down.
Loyalty is prized in South Korea and it is rare for employees of major conglomerates to publicly turn against their owners.
Police said in a statement that Cho Hyun-min was “denying her criminal actions”, but “a review of the probe including testimonies by victims and witnesses as well as recorded audio files point to alleged crime”.
Cho Hyun-min arriving at a police station in Seoul on May 1, 2018. Photo: Reuters
Korean Air had tried to influence the victims, police added, and there were concerns Cho could destroy evidence if she was not detained.
Hanjin is among the country’s 15 biggest business groups, and as well as Korean Air, owns logistics and transport firms and has interests in information technology and hotels.
It used to own Hanjin Shipping, once one of the world’s biggest shipping firms, which was declared bankrupt last year.
Cho has apologised for the actions of his daughters and ordered them to step down from their company posts.