Korean billionaire gives $70,000 to each household in his hometown

SEOUL, July 3 (UPI) -- A South Korean billionaire who served prison time for embezzlement and tax evasion gave more than $100 million in cash to residents of his hometown and alumni of its school.

Lee Joong-keun, chairman of Booyoung Group, a real estate development giant, gave cash gifts of 100,000,000 won (around $70,000) to each of the 280 households in the rural village of Unpyeong-ri, Suncheon, where he grew up about 180 miles south of Seoul.

People who attended the elementary and middle schools in the village with him were also gifted the money in the past month, even if they no longer lived there.

The 82-year-old billionaire also contributed gifts, history books, and toolsets. Including the cash handouts, the total donations are estimated to be around $180 million.

"Chairman Lee hoped to keep the donation thing out of the spotlight. His main purpose was to express his gratitude to all the people of the village who helped in protecting and maintaining his hometown over the years," a Booyoung official told UPI News Korea.

A man of humble background, Lee's career as a real estate developer began taking off in the 1970s. He is regarded as a pioneer in the apartment rental business in Korea.

Later, Booyoung's business extended to other areas, including hotels and golf courses, eventually becoming the 22nd-largest conglomerate in Korea with $16 billion in assets.

Lee has also amassed more than $1 billion in personal wealth, making him one of the 30 richest people in the country.

Booyoung and Lee have been praised as generous donors even before the latest event. Last month, $7.6 million was donated in the company's name to an organization with ties to Korea's Air Force.

Lee and his company have also made philanthropic contributions in Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos.

In 2004, Lee was arrested for evading taxes and embezzling company funds. After four months, he was released from his three-year jail term in lieu of a five-year suspended sentence.

In 2018, he was again arrested on similar charges. Eventually, he was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison, then released in 2021 on parole.

Although Lee's sentence ended in early 2022, he was barred for five years from working at a public institution or at any entity connected with the source of his crime.

That means, technically, Lee will not be allowed to lead Booyoung again until early 2027, when he will be close to 87.

Critics of his recent largesse suggest Lee may be angling for a special pardon declared annually on Aug. 15, Korea's National Liberation Day.

In the past, the Korean government has dispensed special pardons to various white-collar criminals on the national holiday, which celebrates the country's liberation in 1945 from Japan's colonization.

"Lee got a huge dose of dividends from his money-losing Booyoung recently, and these donations are being made ahead of the Aug. 15 National Liberation Day," Seoul National University economics Professor Lee Phil-sang said in a phone interview.

"Some may suspect that Chairman Lee is attempting to improve his image before the pardon decision for Aug. 15 comes down. Of course, he could just be being thankful to his community back home," he said.

Lee received dividend payments of $93 million from Booyoung in 2022 and $96 million this year, even though the company suffered serious losses in the past two years.

The dividend sum of $189 million is almost equal to the total donation amount of $180 million he gave away this year.

Domestic consultancy Leaders Index CEO Park Ju-gun said, "Lee appears to have really changed this time after his stint behind bars. I don't think that the donations are related to other purposes such as the presidential pardon," Park said.

"Besides, looking at Booyoung ownership structure, I think he will probably follow suit of other top Korean conglomerates and transfer management to his family."

The ownership structure of Booyoung Group is unique, with none of its 22 affiliates being listed on the stock exchange.

Unlike other Korean tycoons, he has yet to transfer his shares to his relatives, despite his age. He owns 93.79% in Booyoung, the holding company that retains large majority stakes in all its subsidiaries.