Last month, a South Korean descent New York University (NYU) student and a former marine of the South Korean Navy was involved in a car accident in the southern part of Philadelphia while trying to evade armed carjackers and police chase, resulting in paralysis in his lower body.
According to a GoFundMe page set up by the family of Junoh Kim, a 23-year-old NYU finance student, on June 23, he was visiting friends while working as a summer analyst at a mergers and acquisitions consulting firm in Philadelphia. As he was riding in an Uber near the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, he was unfortunately hit by a group of armed carjackers who were being chased by the police.
Based on information from the Philadelphia police, the four carjackers had just stolen a 2022 BMW X7, refueled, drove through the median onto Interstate 76 highway, lost control, crashed into Junoh’s Uber, and ultimately hit a large tree. All four carjackers were apprehended, with three teenagers being released and one adult facing charges.
“Currently, Junoh is paralyzed from the waist down, with limited movement in his hands (left hand stronger than the right),” his family wrote on the fundraising page. “The extent of his recovery is uncertain, but we remain hopeful.”
Following this accident, the bright future aspirations of this young banking industry hopeful have been shattered. He has been forced to leave school and his job, but his family mentioned that Junoh has not given up hope, still aspiring to work in the financial services industry someday.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Junoh served as a sergeant in the South Korean Marine Corps and a military translator before heading to New York University’s Stern School of Business in 2022 for his bachelor’s degree. This ambitious future investment banker also worked as a researcher at the New York Korean Financial Association.
As of the evening of July 11th, people have donated over $90,000 to Junoh Kim, surpassing the fundraising goal of $100,000.
GoFundMe link: https://www.gofundme.com/f/junoh-kim