Lee Yoon-hyung | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 이윤형 [ citation needed] |
| Died | (aged 26)
New York City, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Suicide |
| Nationality | South Korean |
| Education |
Ewha Womans University (
BA) NYU Steinhardt |
| Parent(s) |
Lee Kun-hee Hong Ra-hee |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 이윤형 |
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | I Yun-hyeong |
| McCune–Reischauer | Yi Yun-hyŏng |
Lee Yoon-hyung ( Korean: 이윤형; Korean pronunciation: [ijunhjʌŋ]; 1979 - November 18, 2005) was a South Korean millionaire and daughter of Samsung Group chief Lee Kun-hee. She died by suicide by hanging herself in her New York City apartment on November 18, 2005, at the age of 26. [1]
Personal life
Lee was born in South Korea. Her father was Samsung chief Lee Kun-hee, and her mother was Hong Ra-hee. She was the youngest of the four children; she had an elder brother Lee Jae-yong and two elder sisters Lee Boo-jin and Lee Seo-hyun.
Lee graduated from Ewha Womans University in Seoul with a Bachelor of Arts degree in French language and French literature. [2] She was a first year graduate student in arts management at New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. [1]
In 2003, it was revealed that she owned $191 million of Samsung stock. [1]
In her spare time, she was very keen on car racing and many extreme sports. She also launched a personal blog to show her daily life to the public and it became very popular in South Korea. [3]
Death
Her cause of death was originally reported in both American and South Korean media as a car crash due to the social stigma against suicide, but the actual details were subsequently published after inquiries by reporters from The Korea Times. [1]
At the time of her death, Lee was a graduate student at the New York University Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, and her father was in the United States undergoing treatment for lung cancer. [4] A doorman at her building told reporters that she sometimes stayed in her apartment for a week at a time, [4] and there were reports that her father had forbidden her to marry her middle-class Korean boyfriend. [4]
At the time of her death, Lee had a personal fortune of more than £100 million (US$157 million). [4]
References
- ^ a b c d Baker, Al (2005-11-26). "After Samsung Reports Accident, Painful Details of Suicide Emerge". The New York Times.
- ^ Kim, Min-hee (2005-11-22). "Samsung chairman's youngest daughter". Daum.
- ^ 三星会长幼女自杀引发思考:灿烂背后的焦虑(图) Archived 2017-10-12 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved in 2016-08-12
- ^ a b c d Marks, Kathy (2005-11-30). "The high life and lonely death of Lee Yoon-hyung". The Independent. Retrieved 2018-06-02.