By Lee Kyung-min
Police will question Korean Air heiress Cho Hyun-min, the second daughter of Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Yang-ho, Tuesday, over allegations she splashed water in the face of an advertising agency official because she was “enraged” by his work performance, in what later was dubbed “water rage.”
The Seoul Gangseo Police Station said it asked Cho to appear for questioning at 10 a.m. for alleged assault and obstruction of business. The questioning comes amid intensified police investigation of the business group, the women “owners” of which have been embroiled in a controversy over “anger management issues.” Cho's mother, Ilwoo Foundation Director Lee Myung-hee, allegedly assaulted construction workers remodeling her home in Seoul in 2013. The alleged victims said Lee forced them to kneel, slapped them on the face and kicked them in the shins.
Police will question Cho over suspected evidence-tampering in the “water rage” case. Officers earlier searched offices belonging to Cho and the marketing department to confiscate four cellphones used by her and two company executives who attended the meeting at which the alleged abuse occurred.
Police are looking into whether she tried to talk witnesses out of making statements against her by threatening or bribing them. Some witnesses said she threw an empty glass at the ad agency employee, in which case she could be prosecuted for aggravated assault. Cho has denied the allegation, claiming she did not throw the glass.
This latest incident has reignited nationwide outrage over the rich and powerful abusing their positions. Cho Hyun-min's sister Cho Hyun-ah was embroiled in the so-called “nut rage” incident four years ago. In 2014, Cho Hyun-ah, who was a Korean Air executive, ordered a plane she was on to return to the terminal after she became annoyed at an attendant who served her nuts in a bag and not on a plate.
Meanwhile, the questioning comes about a week after the company chairman removed his two daughters from management, in a move to limit fallout on the company over the controversy. He said Cho Hyun-ah and Cho Hyun-min would resign as KAL Hotel president and Korean Air senior executive, respectively, adding he would overhaul management by strengthening the decision-making structure to prevent similar incidents.
The questioning also comes amid mounting criticism that government agencies under the former Park Geun-hye administration failed to oversee the business affairs of the group. An internal investigation is ongoing at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport over why it failed to disqualify Cho Hyun-min, a U.S. citizen who identifies herself as Emily Lee Cho, from a board of directors post at Jin Air, the group's low-cost carrier, for six years. Under the law, a foreign national cannot hold a post on the board of a domestic or international logistics company. The Korea Customs Service also launched an investigation into allegations the sisters used the airline to smuggle luxury goods, furniture and other personal items by bypassing customs clearance protocols.