By Kim Rahn
Staff Reporter
The independent counsel investigating the Samsung Group questioned Chairman Lee Kun-hee's only son, Jae-yong, ``as a suspect'' Thursday over allegations about an illicit father-to-son transfer of wealth and group control and other irregularities.
It was the first time the Samsung heir-apparent has appeared at a prosecutor's office, although he was once questioned in writing. He is also the first in the Lee family to face summons since the special prosecutor's team began the investigation into the Group last month.
The junior Lee, 40, presented himself before the counsel in the morning. ``I'm well aware of people's concerns about and expectations of Samsung and me. I'll sincerely answer the questions,'' he told reporters before entering the team's office.
Investigators questioned him over whether he took Samsung's managerial control through illegal deals and whether the group systemically plotted the transaction.
An official from the team said that Lee, in the presence of his lawyer, made ``faithful, but mostly short'' replies to questions. The special prosecutor team could summon Lee again, if need be, the official said. The questioning ran late into the night.
The official said Lee made written statements as a suspect for causing losses to the now-defunct e-Samsung and transferring its losses to other units. He said a summons for Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee will not be issued as yet.
It has been alleged that Everland, the de facto holding company of Samsung, sold convertible bonds (CBs) to Lee at prices much lower than their market value in 1996. He now has 25.1 percent of Everland shares. He is a senior executive of Samsung Electronics.
Former and incumbent Everland presidents have already been found guilty of causing losses to the company through the illicit deal.
Several other Samsung affiliates, including Samsung SDS, are also suspected of having sold their shares to Lee at below-the-market prices, helping him junior take over group control with a small amount of seed money.
The counsel suspects such deals could have only been possible through the group's systematic collusion or under Chairman Lee Kun-hee's orders. However, the Group claims that such suspicions are groundless, and that other shareholders declined to purchase the low-price shares and bonds on their own.
The chairman's son was also questioned over another suspicious deal involving e-Samsung he ran in 2000. The IT business became insolvent after a year with huge losses, but Lee Jae-yong did not suffer any financial damage as other Group affiliates bought the firm's stocks at high prices.
Samsung seemed to be shocked at his summons, as the investigation is being conducted faster than expected _ it was predicted that Lee family members would only be summoned in the final stages of the investigation.
Jae-yong, a graduate of Seoul National University, joined Samsung Electronics in 1991. He completed an MBA at Keio University in Japan and attended a doctoral program at Harvard Business School. He rejoined the company in 2001, and became the chief customer officer early last year.