A US billionaire financier who pioneered the leveraged buyout known as a leveraged buyout has been found dead, his family says.
In a statement, Thomas H. Lee’s family said they were “extremely saddened” by the 78-year-old’s death.
The New York Post reports that he died in his Manhattan office from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The NYPD told the BBC that an unnamed 78-year-old man was found dead at 767 Fifth Avenue Thursday morning.
The offices of Thomas H. Lee Capital LLC are listed at this address.
The police spokesman did not confirm that the man had died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, noting that the cause of death would need to be determined by a coroner.
In a statement to BBC News, police said they responded to an emergency call from an office on Fifth Avenue just after 11:00 a.m. (4:00 p.m. GMT) on Thursday morning.
“After arrival EMS [Emergency Medical Services] responded and pronounced the man dead at the scene,” they said.
A statement from friend and family spokesman Michael Sitrick said: “While the world knew him as one of the pioneers in the private equity business and a successful businessman, we knew him as a devoted husband, father, grandfather, sibling, Friend and philanthropist always put the needs of others before his own.”
In addition to pioneering leveraged buyouts, Mr. Lee is credited with acquiring beverage company Snapple in 1992 and selling it two years later for $1.7 billion — 32 times what he bought it for.
Mr. Lee is also known for his philanthropy and has been a trustee for prominent New York arts organizations such as the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and the Museum of Modern Art.
In 1996, he donated $22 million to his alma mater, Harvard University, a portion of which went toward student financial aid.
“I was lucky enough to make some money. I’m more than happy to give some of that back,” he said at the time.
According to Forbes, Mr Lee was worth $2 billion (£1.6 billion) at the time of his death.
He is survived by his wife, Ann Tenenbaum, and their five children.
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