[THE INVESTOR] Former Korean Air executive Cho Hyun-ah has been banned from leaving the country as of May 24 over allegations that she illegally hired housekeepers from the Philippines by sponsoring them with traineeship visas. She is also suspected of helping her family smuggle in goods including personal items.

Cho was questioned at the Seoul office of the Korea Immigration Service. She has now been added to the list of Korean Air’s flight-risk family members which includes her mother Lee Myung-hee and sister Hyun-min. 

Cho Hyun-ah (center) faces reporters before heading into the immigration office on May 24.

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In addition to the smuggling allegations, the Cho women are charged with general mistreatment of their staff. After several videos and recordings of Lee and Hyun-min hurling insults at their house staff and company employees went viral, some psychologists are saying that the women need professional counseling.

The mother is said to have repeatedly treated employees with gross lack of respect. She will be questioned by both the immigration service and the police next week. Her younger daughter Hyun-min was recently questioned for allegedly flinging water at ad agency workers. She also repeatedly harassed her staff, according to witnesses. Her elder daughter, meanwhile, had her own moment of fame over the so-called “nut rage” incident in 2014 when she forced a Korean Air flight to return to the gate after a flight attendant failed to serve nuts the way she wanted.

By Bryan Hong (bhong@heraldcorp.com)