Love vs. Money
Samsung Chairman's Daughter Kills Herself
Parents Object to Her Marriage to "Average" Man
The cause of death of the third daughter of Samsung Business Group Chairman Lee Kun-Hee turned out to be a suicide, according to a local report.
Yonhap news agency reported on Nov. 26, 2005 that Lee Yoon-Hyung, the youngest daughter of South Korea's multi-billionaire businessman, was not killed in a traffic accident but committed suicide by hanging herself.
The report said that the 26-year-old student of New York University (NYU) was found dead in her apartment near her university in Manhattan, New York during the night of Nov. 18, 2005. She hanged herself to death.
Lee, a student of art management at NYU since September this year, had been agonizing over her marriage. Her parents strongly objected to her plan to marry her boyfriend, according to the report.
She had reportedly been suffering from depression since she was faced with her parents' wanton objection to her plan to marry her "layman" boyfriend.
When he was confronted with the high wall of reality, her boyfriend suggested "splitting," according to some local reports.
Lee was one of the five wealthiest women in South Korea along with her mother and two sisters. Lee's fortunes were estimated at 200 billion won (some 192 million US dollars).
Initially, Samsung announced that Lee was pronounced "medically dead" on the morning of Nov. 19, 2005 after she was involved in a "fatal" traffic accident in New York the previous night.
But Samsung stopped short of explaining details including the accident area, witnesses, and other damages or casualties.
Since the announcement there have been many speculations over the cause of her death.
Lee's body was cremated in a Buddhist funeral in New York on Nov. 22, 2005 local time. Her funeral was attended by only her immediate family members including her older brother Jae-Yong, her oldest sister Bu-Jin, and her second oldest sister Seo-Hyun.
Lee's parents Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-Hee and his wife Hong Ra-Hee flew to New York City but did not attend her funeral. They are still staying in the city.
According to Korean customs, parents do not attend the funeral of their sons or daughters when they die unmarried.
And she was gorgeous to boot. How sad.
Proof that money can't buy happiness.
But I would sure like to find out for myself.