On Tuesday, special prosecutors in South Korea announced that they will indict Lee Jae-yong, the vice chairman of Samsung Electronics and acting head of the entire Samsung Group corporate empire, on charges of bribery, embezzlement, and other crimes linked to the scandal surrounding impeached President Park Geun-hye and her friend, Choi Soon-sil. Lee, 48, is one of South Korea's most powerful men, and his arrest on Feb. 17 was a big blow to the family business conglomerate founded by his grandfather. He took over effective leadership of Samsung after his father, Lee Kun-hee, fell ill in 2014, and he was widely expected to replace the elder Lee as chairman when he stepped down.
It was this smooth transition from father to son that prosecutors say landed Lee in trouble. He stands accused of paying Park and Choi $36 million in bribes to win government support for the dynastic succession, specifically through a merger of two Samsung businesses, eased by the support of the national pension fund. The announced indictment of Lee and four other Samsung executives, three of whom resigned on Tuesday, is the culmination of a three-month investigation by special prosecutors. On Tuesday, acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn declined to extend the investigation, bringing it to an end without prosecutors questioning Park. Park's impeachment is being adjudicated by the constitutional court; if it is upheld, she could face criminal charges, too.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Cocktail of the summer: the Hugo spritzThe Week Recommends The refreshing elderflower-based tipple is giving Aperol a run for its money
-
How the Erin Patterson mushroom trial caught the world's attentionIn the Spotlight Australian woman who laced beef wellington with deadly mushrooms found guilty of murder
-
The failed bombings of 21/7The Explainer The unsuccessful attacks 'unnerved' London and led to a tragic mistake
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new highSpeed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliablespeed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutinySpeed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress codespeed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirementspeed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff displaySpeed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loomSpeed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panelsSpeed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
