SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won on Tuesday admitted the existence of a love child while declaring he is divorcing his wife Roh Soh-yeong, a gallery owner and daughter of ex-President Roh Tae-woo.
The mother of his illegitimate child is a woman in her early 40s.
In a letter to a newspaper on Tuesday, Chey said he and Roh tried but failed to bridge the "deep chasm" that separates them. He added he met someone who offered comfort during the separation process and that the child was born "several summers ago."
He described maintaining two families as both "impossible and improper" and pledged to take responsibility for his new child and the mother. He said while he felt ashamed of publicizing his personal life, he decided to open up about his extramarital affair as he wants to clear the table and put his efforts into working for customers, staff and shareholders as well as the Korean economy.
Chey and Roh married in 1988 and have one son and two daughters between them. The two have been living apart for years, with Chey staying at his mistress' house since being pardoned in August while serving four-year jail term for embezzlement.
His new child is apparently a six-year-old girl.
It was reportedly Roh who refused to divorce Chey, conjuring the possibility of a messy divorce trial. The publication of her husband's letter only prompted another statement to the same effect, with Roh saying her children too are against a divorce.
