Police seek arrest of Korean Air heiress

Ms Cho Hyun Min has been accused of throwing a drink at people at a business meeting last month.
Ms Cho Hyun Min has been accused of throwing a drink at people at a business meeting last month.

SEOUL • South Korean police are seeking an arrest warrant for the younger daughter of Korean Air Lines' chairman on suspicion of assault during a recent angry outburst, police said yesterday.

Ms Cho Hyun Min - the younger sister of the notorious "nut rage" heiress of the airline who got into trouble over a petulant outburst in 2014 - is being investigated over accusations that she threw a drink at people at a business meeting last month.

Ms Cho, 34, made a tearful apology during a media scrum on Monday when she made her first appearance for questioning at Seoul's Gangseo police station, which is leading the investigation.

"The Seoul Gangseo police station requested an arrest warrant for a former senior vice-president, Cho Hyun Min, related to the case of assault and obstruction of business," the police said in a statement.

Ms Cho denied any wrongdoing during questioning, police said.

Police said prosecutors would decide whether to send the request to court for a ruling on her arrest.

Investigators fear evidence in the case may have been destroyed, police added in the statement.

"As a result of digital forensics, there is a risk of destroyed evidence, given circumstances where Korean Air discussed measures to save the situation," they said.

Korean Air declined to comment yesterday.

The younger Cho stepped down from her position at the airline after her father Cho Yang Ho, its chairman, apologised for the behaviour of his daughters.

REUTERS

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on May 05, 2018, with the headline Police seek arrest of Korean Air heiress. Subscribe