Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae and the current management said on March 10 that they are not related to the Airbus rebate scandal and they will seek a legal action against those who defame them without grounds.
"Korean Air recently requested confirmation from France`s Airbus to confirm its past facts, and we will conduct an internal audit separately," Hanjin Group`s current management said. "The current management will explain to shareholders as soon as the facts are confirmed. If any illegal activities are confirmed, we will take all legal steps to protect the company`s interests," it said.
"However, we will not sit idly by and watch acts that negatively affect the company's value by defaming the current management without grounds, and we plan to seek civil and criminal measures," it warned.
Meanwhile, the three-party coalition consisting of Cho Hyun-ah, former vice president of Korean Air, who are arguing with Chairman Cho over the management of Hanjin Group, KCGI, and Bando Engineering said in its statement on March 9, “The French court clearly confirmed the management’s receipt of illegal rebates, and this is a fact that Airbus itself acknowledged.”
“The rebate was paid from 2010 to 2013, when CEO Cho Won-tae was the chief of the company’s passenger business and management strategy division who directly engaged in the purchase of Airbus aircraft and signed a relevant contract," the coalition asserted.