Musical star to divorce convicted husband

Park Hae-mi, left, and her husband Hwang Min have reportedly filed for divorce. Courtesy of Channel A

By Dong Sun-hwa

Musical star Park Hae-mi will divorce her husband Hwang Min, who was convicted in December 2018 over a drunk-driving crash that killed two people, a report said Tuesday.

“The pair recently agreed to break up and filed for divorce,” Park's acquaintance told local media SPOTV NEWS.

Hwang's car crash in August 2018 is believed to have triggered the breakup. His Chrysler sedan with four passengers hit a 25-ton truck parked on the shoulder of a road in Guri, Gyeonggi Province.

The accident claimed the lives of two passengers ― a college student, 20 and an actor, 33.

The others were injured, including Hwang, whose blood alcohol level was 0.104, more than double the 0.05 legal limit.

Uijeongbu District Court had sentenced him to four years and six months in prison in the first trial, but he and the prosecutors appealed.

Park, 55, apologized to the bereaved families in a public statement, saying, “I will never forget the accident and take the responsibility. I am truly sorry.”

Hwang, 46, a musical producer, also apologized to the families during an arrest warrant hearing at the court in October 2018. He said that Park had not let him in the house since the accident.

“I have lived 25 years with her. If we are a family only when we are in joy, I think I have had no family since the accident,” Hwang said during the hearing.

Park ― one of the Korea's best-known musical actresses ― has starred in dozens of hit works including “Mamma Mia!” She married her first husband in 1988 but the marriage broke up in 1994. She tied the knot with Hwang in 1995.