Samsung Group's de facto leader, Lee Jae-yong, received a five-year jail term for corruption Friday. The Seoul Central District Court’s ruling serves as a warning against collusive ties between money and political power, but still leaves room for questions about the jurisprudence behind it.
It was the first time any owner-leader of Korea’s largest chaebol has received a prison term. The court called the case a “modern version of politico-economic collusion,” which had brought a great deal of frustration to the people.
But parts of the ruling do not fit. First, the court gave Lee a not-guilty verdict on Samsung’s provision of 20.4 billion won to sports and culture foundations. But the court found fault with 8.8 billion won given for the purchase of horses for the daughter of Choi Soon-sil, friend of former President Park Geun-hye, seeing it as an effort to buy influence for Lee’s smooth takeover of the group. Park and Choi are being tried in connection, so Lee’s being found guilty is pivotal to their convictions.
At issue was the court’s view of a one-on-one meeting between Park and Lee that was supposed to accelerate Samsung’s support for Choi. Samsung claimed the meeting came a week after an inter-affiliate merger that consolidated Lee’s group-wide hold and had nothing to do with supporting Choi. The court agreed there was no explicit transaction during the meeting _ requests for favors or promises for granting them _ but opted to view it as “tacit” give-and-take trade, citing the environment that showed Lee needed Park’s help.
However, the court gave Lee an extremely “light” sentence. The punishment for stashing away 5 billion won or more alone can carry a sentence of 10 years to life. Lee was also convicted of corruption and embezzlement, among other offences. The principle of a criminal ruling allows the judge’s jurisprudence for selecting evidence, among other things. All told, the court’s ruling does not fit either side’s expectations. We hope the high court will do better.