Hyosung Chairman Cho Hyun-joon on Brother Cho Hyun-moon: "We Should Each Go Our Separate Ways..." Legal Reunion After a Decade

Hyosung Group Chairman Cho Hyun-joon expressed his desire to end ties with his brother, former Vice Chairman Cho Hyun-moon, whom he faced in court for the first time in 12 years, stating, "I hope we can each go our separate ways through this trial." Appearing as a witness at the hearing for the former vice chairman's attempted coercion charges, held at the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 25 on the 21st, Chairman Cho said, "I don't know if my brother is doing this because of property issues or to expose wrongdoing," and added, "We want to disown and sever ties with him." During the hearing, the former vice chairman, seated in the defendant's dock, first bowed to his brother, and Chairman Cho returned the greeting.

Chairman Cho said, "I still cannot believe the outrageous words he used when he came to the house in Seongbuk-dong." He claimed, "I understand that former Vice Chairman Cho visited our father (the late Honorary Chairman Cho Seok-rae) and said, 'I regret being born from the womb of a mother like a viper. I will send him to hell and make him rot in prison until he dies.'" He added, "My mother, hoping that Hyun-moon might return to the family, had even kept a photo of them skiing together when they were young on display at home, but my father was so shocked that he took down all the photos." While this testimony was being given, former Vice Chairman Cho was seen smiling at times.

Meanwhile, when the prosecution disclosed email contents between former News Communication CEO Park Su-hwan and former Vice Chairman Cho, the defense protested. The defense argued, "It makes no sense to refresh the witness's memory using emails that the witness was not directly involved in," and pointed out, "Even if emails are presented, the prosecution should not read them from beginning to end."

Regarding the complaints and accusations filed, Chairman Cho stated, "This was the only way to make Hyun-moon reflect on his actions," adding, "We have sufficiently achieved the goal of correcting what was wrong at Hyosung, so now is the time to stop." During cross-examination, when the defense for former Vice Chairman Cho asked, "Does content unfavorable to you constitute a threat?" Chairman Cho replied, "Wouldn't you be afraid if you saw phrases mentioning a 'Mafia group' or 'smashing things'?"

In March 2017, Chairman Cho Hyun-joon sued former Vice Chairman Cho for attempted fraud and other charges, alleging that his brother had threatened him while demanding the purchase of unlisted stocks, upon the advice of former CEO Park. Investigations revealed that former Vice Chairman Cho had threatened Chairman Cho to force the distribution of a press release stating that he (the former vice chairman) was a key driver of the company's growth. Prosecutors believe that after suspecting that rumors about his spouse's infidelity were spread by Chairman Cho's side, former Vice Chairman Cho left the company and entered into a conflict with the family.

The origin of this incident dates back to 2014. The "War of the Brothers" began when former Vice Chairman Cho filed a complaint with prosecutors against the heads of Hyosung Group affiliates, including his older brother, Chairman Cho, for charges of embezzlement and breach of trust. Following this, he became estranged from the Hyosung family.