Samsung considers legal action over false reports about chairman's health
The company was also mulling whether to now move Lee to the general ward as he continues to “recuperate steadily,” said an official at Samsung Medical Center, where the 72-year-old is currently hospitalized in the intensive care unit.
A Samsung Group spokesman said “all check-ups shows that he is recovering and all and any reports that he is in a critical condition are false.”
"We've repeatedly requested media with unsubstantiated reports for corrections. If they do not comply, we may file suit," he added.
Lee suffered a heart attack on May 10 and went through a surgery to expand his heart veins the following day. Since then, rumors have popped up on various information channels that he was in a “critical condition” or may already have died.
Last week, a local online news outlet reported that Lee died early morning on May 16, and that Samsung officials were hiding the fact, and preparing a statement for the announcement and funeral arrangements.
Samsung responded by saying the story was “totally unfounded” and asked the news outlet to change the story.
However, Lee is still unconscious and the company is yet to clarify whether he will be able to return to the helm of Korea’s largest conglomerate.
Stories about Lee's rumoured health decline have been published since last year, before the heart attack. The 72-year-old had lung cancer surgery in 2000 and was treated for pneumonia in August last year.
Source: ZDNet Korea (zdnet.co.kr)