The mother of the Korean Air ‘nut rage’ heiress has been charged over allegations she abused employees.
Lee Myung-hee, 69, faces multiple allegations of assault against drivers and housekeepers from her personal staff as well as construction workers renovating her home and building a Korean Air-affiliated hotel.
Lee – wife of Korean Air chairman Cho Yang-ho – attended an arraignment hearing at Seoul Central District Court on Monday.
‘I am sorry,’ she said during the hearing, according to the Korea Times.
Lee Myung-hee (pictured), the wife of Korean Air chairman Cho Yang-ho, faces multiple allegations of assault against employees
Meanwhile, also on Monday, her eldest daughter Cho Hyun-ah reported to the customs office in Incheon to face questioning over allegations of tax evasion and smuggling.
She is suspected of smuggling luxury goods via Korean Air planes and bypassing customs clearance procedures.
Last month, officials confiscated 2.5 tons of suspected smuggled goods that may have belonged to Cho from a subcontractor of Korean Air and the residences of company officials.
The 44-year-old, who was formerly a vice president of Korean Air, was also questioned last months over claims she and her family illegally hired more than 10 Filipina housekeepers.


Cho Hyun-ah (left) made headlines in 2014 for kicking a cabin crew chief off a Korean Air plane for being served macadamia nuts in a bag rather than a bowl. Cho Hyun-min (right) was accused of throwing a drink at a manager’s face in a fit of rage during a business meeting
Her mother was summoned by the police twice last week for questioning over the alleged abuses before an arrest warrant was issued.
They range from cursing and screaming at employees to kicking, slapping and even throwing a pair of scissors at them.
A video that emerged last month showed a woman, reportedly Lee, shoving a female construction worker and throwing a pile of documents on the ground.
Lee, who is the director of Hanjin Group’s non-profit Ilwoo Foundation, is accused of verbally and physically assaulting the workers remodelling hotels owned by the group.
‘Lee used her superior status to habitually abuse, insult and injure the socially disadvantaged without a sense of guilt,’ according to a statement from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency.
‘Despite the gravity of the case, she has denied the allegations by saying she has no recollection, raising concerns over destruction of evidence,’ it added.


Lee arrives for questioning on her arrest warrant at the Seoul Central District Court on Monday
A Korean Air spokesman declined to comment on the matter citing the ongoing investigation.
The education ministry is also looking into whether there was any wrongdoing when the chairman’s son transferred to Inha University, which is run by Hanjin Group.
Korean Air president Cho Won-tae allegedly transferred to the school in 1998 without meeting the requirement, according to the Korea Times.
Lee’s two daughters, who held management positions at South Korea’s top carrier, became viral sensations for their own temper tantrums which were dubbed the ‘nut rage’ and ‘water rage’ scandals online.
Her older daughter Cho Hyun-ah made global headlines in 2014 for kicking a cabin crew chief off a Korean Air plane for being served macadamia nuts in a bag rather than a bowl.
She later served a short prison sentence.

Lee faces multiple allegations of assault against drivers and housekeepers from her personal staff as well as construction workers renovating her home and building a hotel
Earlier this year, her younger sister Cho Hyun-min was accused of throwing a drink at an advertising agency manager’s face in a fit of rage during a business meeting.
Their father, Korean Air chairman Cho Yang-ho, issued a public apology over the ‘immature’ behaviour of his offspring and removed his two daughters from their management roles.
Authorities have since launched a flurry of official probes into the family’s reported abuse of workers, as well as smuggling and immigration law violations.
But that has done little to placate employees.
Hundreds of Korean Air workers have held weekly protests in Seoul demanding the ouster of the Cho clan from the country’s flag carrier – a rare act of defiance in the country that prizes loyalty among workers.
The current chairman’s late father founded the Hanjin Group – the South’s 14th-largest business group that runs logistics, transport and hotel businesses as well as Korean Air.