Tuesday, October 26, 2021
Court convicts de facto chief
Punishment for Samsung inheritance for drug use
Lee Jae Yong is said to have repeatedly taken the narcotic drug that Michael Jackson died of. Now Samsung’s de facto leader has to pay the equivalent of 51,700 euros fine. For him, however, these are peanuts, he is one of the richest people in the world – and was not convicted for the first time.
Electronics company Samsung’s heir Lee Jae Yong has been convicted of illicit drug use. The de facto boss of the company has to pay a fine of 70 million won – around 51,700 euros – as the news agency Yonhap reported. Lee is said to have repeatedly taken the anesthetic propofol.
Propofol is usually used as an anesthetic, but it is also used as an intoxicant. Pop star Michael Jackson died of a propofol overdose in 2009.
Lee is officially the vice president of Samsung, but is considered the top decision maker of the world’s leading manufacturer of smartphones and memory chips. He ranks 238th among the richest people in the world, according to Forbes. The fine accounts for about 0.0006 percent of his net worth, which is estimated at around $ 10.2 billion.
Already in prison several times
Lee has been jailed several times in the wake of a bribery and embezzlement scandal, most recently since January after he was convicted of corruption. He has been released on parole since August. Numerous politicians and entrepreneurs had spoken out in favor of his early release.
Samsung is by far the largest of the family-run corporate conglomerates in South Korea. The annual business turnover corresponds to one fifth of the South Korean gross domestic product and is decisive for the economic success of the Asian country. Lee has been at the helm of the electronics company for several years after his father, Lee Kun Hee, was unable to go about business due to a heart attack.