Lee Joong-keun, chairman of Booyoung Group (Yonhap)
SEOUL, June 28 (Korea Bizwire) — Several hundreds of people who have regional and school connections with construction tycoon Lee Joong-keun have been paid a surprise financial windfall of up to 100 million won (US$77,000) each without any conditions, some of the beneficiaries said Wednesday.
Lee, the 82-year-old chairman of construction and real estate conglomerate Booyoung Group, has recently delivered up to 100 million won in cash to each of his hometown residents and elementary, middle and high school alumni, they said.
About 280 residents living in six villages of the Unpyeong-ri district of the southwestern city Suncheon, where Lee was born and spent his childhood, have received remittances ranging from 26 million won to 100 million won per person from the tycoon for the past two months.
Lee’s cash gifts were paid differently to the residents depending on the number of years of their residence in the villages, they said, adding a recipient of 100 million won, for instance, was actually wired 90.2 million won after tax.
Earlier, the chairman reportedly gave similar cash gifts to his elementary, middle and high school classmates. Lee was born in a poor farming family in Unpyeong-ri and graduated from Dongsan Elementary School and Suncheon Middle School.
About 80 people who graduated from the elementary and middle schools in the same years as Lee were paid 100 million won each, while his former classmates at Suncheon High School received 50 million won each.
This file photo provided by Booyoung Group shows its headquarters in central Seoul.
“It has been a long time since Lee left his hometown and it is understood he gave the money as an expression of gratitude for protecting his hometown,” an Unpyeong-ri resident said, adding the Booyoung side surveyed the status of all residents last year.
Booyoung officials also confirmed the huge donations by the chairman, saying he had secretly attempted to deliver the gifts.
The officials estimated the total amount of cash personally donated by Lee at 140 billion won, noting the amount would increase to 240 billion won if donated items, such as gift sets, tool sets and history books, are added.
Booyoung is the nation’s 22nd-largest conglomerate built around apartment construction, real estate development and media businesses.
(Yonhap)
