South Korean prosecutors on Wednesday sought a nine-year prison sentence for Samsung’s de facto boss Lee Jae-yong during his new bribery trial, where Lee apologized and vowed not to be involved in similar allegations in an apparent request for clemency.
The case is a key element in an explosive 2016 scandal that sparked months of public protests and toppled the South Korean president. A sentence on Lee could put him back in jail accused of bribing former President Park Geun-hye and his longtime confidant to gain government support for his push to consolidate his control over Samsung.
The new trial comes as Lee faces immense pressure to navigate Samsung’s transition after his father and Samsung Electronics president Lee Kun-Hee died in October.
A team of prosecutors led by independent lawyer Park Young-soo demanded that the Seoul High Court sentence Lee to prison. They said Samsung was “more actively seeking unfair profits” than other companies in the 2016 scandal. Prosecutors said Samsung, which is South Korea’s largest company, should “lead by example.” to efforts to eliminate corruption.
“Samsung is a business group with overwhelming power and it is even said that South Korean companies are divided into Samsung and not Samsung,” prosecutors said in the final comments. “The rule of law and the principle of egalitarianism … are intended to punish those in power and those in economic power according to the same level.”
Prosecutors also asked the court to sentence three former Samsung executives to seven years in prison and another former executive to five years.
Lee, 52, vice president of Samsung Electronics, was sentenced in 2017 to five years in prison for offering 8.6 billion won ($ 7 million) in bribes to Park and her former trusted man Choi Soon-sil. But he was released in early 2018 after the Seoul High Court reduced his term to 2 1/2 years and suspended his sentence, overturning key convictions and reducing the number of bribes.
Last year, the Supreme Court returned the case to the high court, ruling that Lee’s amount of bribes had been underestimated. It was said that the money Samsung spent on buying three racehorses used by Choi’s equestrian daughter and funding a winter sports foundation run by Choi’s niece should also be considered bribes.
During Wednesday’s court hearing, Lee’s lawyers said the basic nature of the 2016 scandal was the abuse of power by former President Park that violated the freedom and property rights of companies. Lawyers said Lee and other former Samsung executives involved in the scandal were unable to withstand pressure from Park and Choi and that they and Samsung did not receive any special favors from the Park government.
Lee apologized for the case, saying “it’s all my fault” and that “I’m deeply sorry and ashamed of myself.” Lee said he would never engage in any activity that could cause misunderstandings and pledged to focus on contributing to South Korean society.
Lee also reiterated his earlier promise not to pass on management rights to his children and to stop repressing workers ’attempts to organize unions.
According to South Korean media, the Seoul High Court will issue a ruling on January 18.
In September, prosecutors separately charged Lee with charges of stock price manipulation, breach of trust and audit breaches related to a 2015 merger between two Samsung subsidiaries that helped strengthen Lee’s control over the crown jewel of the group, Samsung Electronics.
Lee’s lawyers denied the charges and called them “unilateral claims.” They say the 2015 merger was “a normal business activity.”