Samsung Group Denies All Bribery Allegations
By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter
A former Samsung insider postponed a fourth news conference originally slated for Wednesday at which he was to provide further detailed evidence on the conglomerate's alleged massive slush fund creation and bribery.
Kim Yong-chul, the former director of the legal department at Samsung Group, planned to hold a news conference along with the Catholic Priests' Association for Justice, but decided to delay it to see how an independent counsel bill will be dealt with at the National Assembly.
The lawyer and the priests' group have disclosed irregularities at the nation's largest conglomerate, claiming that it has systematically offered bribes to politicians, prosecutors and government officials.
They called for an independent counsel to secure fairness and independence in the investigation as Samsung has regularly bribed incumbent prosecutors.
The series of revelations were made after Samsung denied the allegations.
Samsung has maintained its stance denouncing the allegations as groundless criticism, repeating that the bribery and slush fund creation do not involve the conglomerate.
But the allegations have been strongly supported after a former legal secretary of President Roh Moo-hyun revealed that he had been offered a bribe from Samsung in 2004, which he returned shortly thereafter.
Lee Yong-chul, the former legal affairs secretary, detailed the bribe offer, something Samsung has denied, with evidence in the form of photos that he took when the money was delivered to him, thinking such evidence could be useful later.
His description of how the money was delivered to him is similar to the routine described by Kim on how Samsung offers a bribe.
The former legal affairs secretary alleged that he received five million won in cash from Lee Kyung-hoon, Samsung Electronics' lawyer, in 2004 as a gift for Lunar New Year's Day. The cash was contained inside a book sent to the former secretary as a gift.
After the series of revelations, the prosecution said that it will form a special investigation team to probe Samsung's alleged bribery, and slush fund creation. They will also expand the investigation to the group's passing of its ownership from Chairman Lee Kun-hee to his only son Jae-yong.