Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong has been released from a South Korean prison and is now on parole.
He served 207 days in jail, just over half of his sentence he received after being convicted of bribery and embezzlement in January. The case also involved the country’s former President Park Guen-hye, who is also in jail for bribery and corruption. Since 2014 as Samsung electronics had been founded by Lee’s grandfather, Lee Jae-yong has been the de facto head
Lee stated to the press, “I’ve caused much concern for the people. I deeply apologise. I am listening to the concerns, criticisms, worries and high expectations for me. I will work hard.”
The 53-year-old was sent to prison for two-and-a-half years by a high court in January. He has been accused of paying 43 billion won ($37.7 million) to two non-profit foundations operated by Choi Soon-sil, a friend of Park’s, in exchange for political support – alleged to include backing for a controversial Samsung merger which paved the way for Lee to become eventual head of the conglomerate. The deal needed support from the government-run national pension fund.
At the time of his verdict, the court stated that Lee “actively provided bribes and implicitly asked the president to use her power to help his smooth succession” at the head of Samsung. The court found Lee guilty of bribery, embezzlement and concealment of criminal proceeds worth about 8.6 billion won ($7.8 million). The decision to release Lee was made by the Justice Ministry after considering the effects of the pandemic on South Korea’s economy and global markets.
