Bribery case that ousted S Korean Prez earns Samsung heir 5-year jail
25 Aug 2017 6:20 PM GMT
Seoul: The heir to the Samsung business empire, which includes the world's biggest smartphone maker, was sentenced on Thursday to five years in prison for bribery and other offences in connection with the scandal that brought down South Korean president Park Geun-Hye. Lee Jae-Yong's penalty could leave the giant firm rudderless for years and hamper its ability to make key investment decisions.
The vice-chairman of Samsung Electronics, 49, arrived at Seoul Central District Court on a justice ministry bus handcuffed, bound with white rope around his dark jacket, and carrying an envelope of documents. Lee was found guilty of bribery, embezzlement, perjury and other charges centred on payments and promises by Samsung totalling 43.3 billion won ($40 million) to Park's secret confidante Choi Soon-Sil.
The court found the money was in return for policy favours including government support for Lee's hereditary succession at the group, after his father was left bedridden by a heart attack in 2014. The defence had denied the charges, saying Samsung was pressured by Park to make the donations under duress — and that Lee was not aware of them and did not approve them. Four other top Samsung executives too were convicted and received sentences of up to four years.
Lee's lawyers said he would appeal. The demonstrators who mounted giant candlelit protests against Park last year also targeted Lee and other chiefs of the chaebols, as the family-controlled conglomerates that dominate Asia's fourth-largest economy are known.
South Korea's GDP is still growing but social and economic frustrations have mounted over the benefits not being equally shared.
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