- South Korean court scolds mogul, asking him to set example for children
A South Korean district court fined billionaire Samsung Electronics’ Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong 70 million won ($60,000) on Tuesday over the tycoon’s repeated use of an anesthetic.
The Seoul Central District Court ordered Lee to pay the money as the drug, known as propofol, is an addictive controlled substance and its abuse can result in social problems.
“Considering the social influence of the accused, his crime is not small because he received considerable doses” of the drug, the court said. “However, we decided on the fine as he has no previous record of being punished for the same crime. We ask the accused to free himself from propofol and show a good example to his children.”
The divorced Lee has two children.
Lee’s attorneys said that the sedative was administered for medical purposes, but prosecutors, who said he was given the drug 41 times at a clinic between 2015 and 2020, demanded that the court fine him 70 million won for drug abuse.
Among its applications, propofol is used as a general anesthetic.
“I am deeply regretful,” Lee told the court earlier this month, explaining that he took the drug for treatment, Reuters quoted him as saying, “I will make sure that this does not happen again.”
The news agency quoted his lawyer as explaining that Lee began treatment because of psychological pressure resulting from his late father’s hospitalization in 2014, and that it became worse during his trial on corruption charges.
People who take a controlled substance that has been illegally administered can be prosecuted under South Korean law. Those who administer it can also be charged.
Lee was released on parole in August after serving more than half of a 30-month prison term he was given for bribing former President Park Geun-hye.
He is also involved in another legal dispute after being accused of stock price manipulation and accounting fraud related to the $8 billion merger of Cheil Industries and Samsung C&T in 2015. The case is pending at a Seoul district court. Lee has pleaded not guilty.