Hwang Hana (37), the granddaughter of the founder of Namyang Dairy Products, who fled overseas while under investigation on suspicion of drug use, has been detained, and the expensive luxury down coat worn during the warrant review is drawing attention.
On the 26th, Hwang arrived at the Suwon District Court Anyang Branch for a pretrial detention hearing wearing an olive long down coat. The item is known to be from luxury brand Rick Owens.
Rick Owens is a brand founded in 1994 by U.S.-born designer Rick Owens, known for its avant-garde designs. The long down coat Hwang wore uses quilted nylon with down filling, and sells in Korea for 3 million to 4 million won.
That day, Hwang kept silent and headed to the courtroom when reporters asked whether she had used drugs additionally in Thailand or Cambodia and why she fled. Hwang, who was under suspicion of administering methamphetamine to acquaintances in Gangnam, Seoul, in July 2023, departed for Thailand to evade the investigation and later is known to have illegally entered Cambodia and stayed there.
Police applied pressure with an Interpol blue notice and passport invalidation, and recently arrested Hwang, who had expressed an intention to turn herself in, on the 24th aboard a national carrier at Phnom Penh International Airport and escorted her back. In court, Hwang fully denied the charges, saying there was "no methamphetamine use at all," while appealing for leniency, saying she "decided to return because I want to take responsibility for the child recently born in Cambodia."
However, the court issued an arrest warrant, citing that Hwang had stayed overseas for a long period to avoid the investigation and had prior convictions for similar crimes, saying there was a "risk of evidence destruction and flight." Hwang previously served a prison sentence for administering psychotropic medication and was released, which lent weight to the latest detention decision.
With Hwang in custody, police plan to focus on how the drugs were obtained and whether there was additional use during her time abroad. They also plan to look into the process of illegal entry into Cambodia and whether there were any unlawful acts there.