New scandal on Samsung’s board of directors. Once again, the protagonist is its CEO Lee Jae-Yong, that already last February, he was arrested for a corruption case that also affected prominent members of the South Korean government. For Lee Jae-Yong, the prosecution asked for 12 years in prison in a trial that, although it resulted in a 30-month jail sentence, was commuted last August to his probation.
On this occasion, however, the head of Samsung has been accused of drug abuse. Specifically, the manager of the multinational technology company has been accused of taking his relationship with him too seriously. Profopol, an anesthetic drug that he would have had access to at a clinic specializing in plastic surgery.
According to the charges that have been filed on this occasion, Lee Jae-Yong would have visited the clinic 41 times between 2015 and 2020, many more than normal for the follow-up of any treatment or aesthetic retouching. In his statement before this new court, the CEO of Samsung has pleaded guilty to the charges and has apologized for his behavior.
In return, the court has imposed a financial penalty of 70 million won (60,000 euros) and has been “scolded” by the judge himself, who has considered that taking into account the position of the manager, he should be concerned as much as possible about serve as a good example. Considering that Yong’s personal fortune exceeds 10 billion dollars, it is not an exaggeration to say that the fine that has been imposed on him has been quite light.
