Harold Rogers, interim CEO of Coupang Corp., arrives at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, 30 January 2026. Rogers is to be questioned about allegations of evidence destruction in connection to a massive data breach at the company. File. Photo by YONHAP / EPA
Harold Rogers, interim chief executive of Coupang Korea, was questioned for more than 12 hours by police over allegations that the company destroyed evidence during an internal probe into a massive personal data leak.
Rogers arrived at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency at about 2 p.m. Thursday and left around 2:22 a.m. Friday. He declined to answer reporters’ questions, including whether he acknowledged the evidence destruction allegations, how the company determined that about 3,000 users were affected, and why he had not appeared for questioning earlier.
Before entering police headquarters, Rogers said Coupang had “fully cooperated with all government investigations and will continue to do so,” adding that the company would also cooperate with the police probe.
Police are investigating whether Coupang conducted an unauthorized “self-investigation” after the data breach and destroyed evidence in the process. The company allegedly analyzed a suspect’s laptop without prior consultation with authorities and publicly announced its own findings, including the estimated scope of the leak.
Investigators reportedly questioned Rogers about Coupang’s actions, including allegedly contacting the data leak suspect in China without police knowledge, retrieving the laptop, and conducting forensic analysis independently.
Attention has also focused on whether Rogers will leave South Korea. Police applied for a travel ban against him after his entry on Jan. 21, but prosecutors rejected the request. Rogers previously left the country earlier this month after completing a two-day schedule of National Assembly hearings.
— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI
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Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260131010014003
