On December 5, Cho made headlines when it was reported that she turned a plane around in order to kick out a crew member. The story goes that Cho was dissatisfied with how her nuts were served to her. Cho then verbally abused the stewardess who served her the nuts, Kim, as well as the purser Park Chang Jin, before ordering the plane to turn around to kick Park off.
Cho has since been accused of violating aviation laws by ordering a plane to turn around. Korean Air is suspected of destroying evidence and pressuring its employees to lie about the "nut rage" incident in order to protect Cho, the daughter of Korean Air chairman Cho Yang Ho.
On February 12, the court announced that Cho was found guilty of violating aviation laws, changing a flight path, and obstructing justice. Korean Air refuses to make a comment on the situation as representatives have told reporters, "We have nothing to say about the decision. We have no excuse to offer," and, "This matter is the attorney's responsibility; we have nothing to say."
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport has also been accused of accommodating to Korean Air's request to overlook evidence during their investigation. They did not have much to say on the matter as well with one representative saying, "We respect the court's decision."
Considering that prosecution originally demanded 10-15 years, many view Cho's punishment to be too light. Top netizen comments include: "One year???? I'm so shocked I can't even curse. You're joking. The whole world is paying attention and yet only one year?? We are going to be compared to America," "Korean Nut Air is probably distressed...," and, "The attorney definitely arranged it to be that way.... If she's released from prison after the first trial, then she doesn't look good to the public. He probably is planning on getting her released in the appeal trial.... It may be hard but she will eat peanuts to comfort mind and body while in prison...."
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