Yi Han-yong

Yi Han-yong, birth name Ri Il-nam (died 26 February 1997), was a North Korean defector.

Early life

Ri's mother Song Hye-rang's younger sister Song Hye-rim was a mistress of Kim Jong-il; Ri's mother raised Kim Jong-il's and Hye-rim's son Kim Jong-nam alongside Ri and Ri's sister Nam-ok at a secluded villa outside of Pyongyang in order to keep Jong-nam's parentage a secret from Kim Il-sung. He went abroad to Moscow for university, and then defected to South Korea in 1982 while studying at a language school in Switzerland.

Life in South Korea

After defecting, he initially attempted to keep his identity a secret, changing his name and even going as far as undergoing plastic surgery. His life in the South was troubled. He first studied drama at Hanyang University, and married in 1989; however, in 1991, a construction company he started went bankrupt, and he was jailed for 10 months on charges of embezzlement. In 1996, due to his ongoing financial difficulties, Yi made his identity as Kim Jong-il's nephew known publicly, selling the story of his aunt Song Hye-rim's exile in Moscow to South Korean newspapers, and then publishing a book about his experiences entitled Taedong River Royal Family.