South Korea pardons Samsung heir in bid to revive the country’s economy

Samsung’s Crown Vice President Lee Jae-yong was pardoned by South Korea’s president on Friday for the crime of bribery, allowing him greater freedom to run the smartphone and semiconductor giant.

The billionaire had been arrested twice but had been on probation since last year. Now, the president’s special pardon ends a five-year ban on Lee from holding a formal position at Samsung. The company’s shares rose 1% in Seoul on the news.

“I will work harder and fulfill my duties as a businessman,” Lee said, after his pardon was granted.

“I will contribute to the economy through continuous investment and job creation for young people, giving back to the people’s expectations and the government’s consideration,” he added.

Lee has served as the leader of Samsung since 2014, when his father slipped into a coma after suffering a heart attack. He died in 2020.

The presidential pardon comes before the country’s Liberation Day, which marks Korea’s liberation from Japanese imperial rule in 1945. The South Korean government generally grants pardons around the commemorative date.

Lee, also known as Jay Y. Lee, was sentenced to five years in prison for embezzlement and bribery in August 2017 but was released less than a year later in 2018 when an appeals court dismissed some of the charges and suspended the sentence.

The businessman, however, was sent back to prison in January 2021 after being sentenced to two and a half years after the Seoul Supreme Court found him guilty of embezzlement and bribery. He was placed on probation on Liberation Day last August.

Along with Lee, Lotte Group chairman Shin Dong-bin and two other business leaders were included in the group pardoned or reinstated by chairman Yoon Suk Yeol.

South Korean Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon announced on Friday that “to overcome the economic crisis by revitalizing the economy, Samsung Vice President Lee Jae-yong, whose term ended recently, will be reinstated.” .

Despite an uncertain economic environment exacerbated by long-standing supply chain problems and the war in Ukraine, Samsung has outlined some bold investment plans this year.

In May, the South Korean conglomerate said it would invest more than $350 billion in its business and create tens of thousands of new jobs over the next five years, mostly in South Korea.

No restrictions

Forgiveness paves the way for Lee to work without restrictions. Under South Korean law, if a person is convicted of embezzlement or breach of trust worth more than 500 million Korean won (US$384,101), that person will not be able to work for a crime-related company for five years. , even after the end of the prison sentence. The reinstatement will lift Lee’s employment restrictions.

However, your legal troubles may not be over. He faces a separate trial over a controversial 2015 merger that helped him increase control over the company.

Eleven Samsung executives, including Lee, were indicted in 2020 on charges including illegal dealings, stock manipulation and perjury.

This case is still pending.