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Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee, who had struggled with illness after falling at home in 2014, passed away today (25th) at the age of 78.

The future of Samsung is attracting attention as his son, Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, is being tried on charges such as fraudulent accounting.



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Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee passed away at the age of 78 at Samsung Medical Center in Ilwon-dong, Seoul.



The exact cause of death and time of death are still unknown.



Samsung Electronics announced that it would hold a funeral as a simple family head in accordance with the will of the deceased and the bereaved through a text message in obituary format.



Previously, on the night of May 10, 2014, Chairman Lee suffered from a myocardial infarction at his home in Itaewon-dong, Seoul for 6 years and 5 months.



Chairman Lee did not appear in the media during the fight.



Medical staff said that Chairman Lee has been awake for about 10 hours a day in a stable state and has received rehabilitation treatment.



While Chairman Lee passed away, Samsung has been carrying out the so-called three major succession work to his son Jae-yong Lee, vice chairman of the company, including the sale of chemical subsidiaries and listing of Samsung SDS and Everland.




In particular, Vice Chairman Lee is being tried on charges of instructing stock price manipulation and fraudulent accounting during the merger between Cheil Industries and Samsung C&T in 2015 and subsequent retirement of treasury stocks.



Vice-Chairman Lee recently traveled to and from the Netherlands and Vietnam to actively manage and denied all charges through an agent during the first trial preparation period on the 22nd.



Vice-Chairman Lee is expected to raise taxes for the trillions of won left by Chairman Lee to inherit shares of Samsung affiliates as collateral for Samsung Electronics shares.



In 1987, when founder Lee Byung-cheol passed away, only 25 minutes after the news of his death was announced, at the Samsung Presidents' Meeting, Lee Kun-hee, then vice chairman of the group, was elected as chairman.