Billionaire South Korean Samsung heir is given a presidential pardon following his jail term

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Samsung’s South Korean billionaire heir was given a presidential pardon after his jail term for corruption so he can help tackle the ‘national economic crisis.’

Lee Jae-yong, 54,  the vice-chairman of Samsung Electronics, is the latest person to be handed a presidential pardon, continuing South Korea’s long tradition of freeing business leaders convicted of corruption on economic grounds. 

He was convicted of bribery and embezzlement in January last year but justice minister Han Dong-hoon said he had been ‘reinstated’ to help tackle the economic crisis.  

According to Forbes, Lee has a net worth of $7.9 billion.  The pardon is largely symbolic as he was already out on parole in August 2021 after serving 18 months in prison for bribery, just over half of his original sentence. 

The scandal led to massive protests and brought down then-President Park Geun-hye in 2017. 

The pardon that he received on Friday will allow him to return to work fully and lift a post-prison employment restriction which had been set for five years.

Lee Jae-yong, 54, the vice-chairman of Samsung Electronics, pictured leaving court in 2021, is the latest person to be handed a presidential pardon, continuing South Korea's long tradition of freeing business leaders convicted of corruption on economic grounds

 Lee Jae-yong, 54, the vice-chairman of Samsung Electronics, pictured leaving court in 2021, is the latest person to be handed a presidential pardon, continuing South Korea’s long tradition of freeing business leaders convicted of corruption on economic grounds

The pardon is largely symbolic as he was already out on parole in August 2021 after serving 18 months in prison for bribery, just over half of his original sentence

The pardon is largely symbolic as he was already out on parole in August 2021 after serving 18 months in prison for bribery, just over half of his original sentence

The pardon is largely symbolic as he was already out on parole in August 2021 after serving 18 months in prison for bribery, just over half of his original sentence

Alongside Lee, three other high-profile businessmen were pardoned, including Lotte Group chairman Shin Dong-bin, sentenced to a suspended two-and-a-half year prison term in a bribery case in 2018.  

In a statement, the justice ministry said: ‘Due to the global economic crisis, the dynamism and vitality of the national economy have deteriorated, and the economic slump is feared to be prolonged.’

The statement added that alongside other high-level executives, Lee was given the pardon so he could  ‘lead the country’s continuous growth engine through active investment in technology and job creation.’

According to the ministry, a total of 1,693 people including prisoners with terminal illnesses and those near the end of their terms are on the pardon list, ahead of the annual Liberation Day anniversary on Monday.   

After Lee's pardon was announced he issued a statement which said he aims to contribute to the economy through 'continuous investment and job creation for young people.' Pictured: Lee in 2020

After Lee's pardon was announced he issued a statement which said he aims to contribute to the economy through 'continuous investment and job creation for young people.' Pictured: Lee in 2020

After Lee’s pardon was announced he issued a statement which said he aims to contribute to the economy through ‘continuous investment and job creation for young people.’ Pictured: Lee in 2020

This anniversary marks Japan’s 1945 World War II surrender, in which Korea was liberated from decades of colonial rule and it is typically celebrated each year with hundreds of prisoners being pardoned. 

After Lee’s pardon was announced he issued a statement which said he aims to contribute to the economy through ‘continuous investment and job creation for young people.’ 

The 54-year-old had been jailed for offences connected to a massive corruption scandal which brought down former president Park Geun-hye. 

He was the latest in a long history of South Korean tycoons who have been charged with bribery, embezzlement, tax evasion or other offences. 

However, many of those convicted have had their sentences cut or suspended, including late Samsung chairman Lee Kun-hee, who was convicted twice.

The tycoons often received presidential pardons in recognition of their ‘contribution to the national economy.’ 

The 54-year-old, pictured in 2021, had been jailed for offences connected to a massive corruption scandal which brought down former president Park Geun-hye

The 54-year-old, pictured in 2021, had been jailed for offences connected to a massive corruption scandal which brought down former president Park Geun-hye

The 54-year-old, pictured in 2021, had been jailed for offences connected to a massive corruption scandal which brought down former president Park Geun-hye

South Korea’s president, Yoon Suk-yeol, today said that the pardons were aimed to improve the lot of ‘ordinary people who had been affected by the prolonged Covid-19 pandemic.’ 

Analysts do not agree with the president’s view, with many, including Vladimir Tikhonov, professor of Korean studies at the University of Oslo, saying that the pardons simply allow major businessmen to feel they were not ‘constrained by any legal norms.’ 

It was expected that former conservative president Lee Myung-bak, who is currently serving a prison sentence over corruption, would benefit from the pardons. 

But he has not been included on the list as justice minister Han said that all politicians had been excluded this time because the economy was the most ‘urgent and important’ issue.

It has been suggested in local reports that pardoning Lee Myung-bak would have been too risky for President Yoon, who is already struggling with record-low approval ratings.  

Local reports have speculated that pardoning Lee Myung-bak would have been too risky for President Yoon, who is already struggling with record-low approval ratings.

Lee Jae-yong is yet to face a separate trial over accusations of accounting fraud regarding a merger of two Samsung firms in 2015.   

Lee Jae-yong, pictured, is yet to face a separate trial over accusations of accounting fraud regarding a merger of two Samsung firms in 2015

Lee Jae-yong, pictured, is yet to face a separate trial over accusations of accounting fraud regarding a merger of two Samsung firms in 2015

Lee Jae-yong, pictured, is yet to face a separate trial over accusations of accounting fraud regarding a merger of two Samsung firms in 2015

It comes after he was excused from a hearing in May in that trial to host US President Joe Biden, who kicked off a tour of South Korea by visiting Samsung’s chip plant, alongside President Yoon.   

Lee’s pardon comes after Samsung, the world’s biggest smartphone maker, with a turnover of about one-fifth of South Korea’s gross domestic product, unveiled a 450 trillion won ($346 billion) investment blueprint for the next five years.

The blueprint is aimed at making Samsung a leader in sectors from semiconductors to biologics and creating 80,000 new jobs.   

Lee’s imprisonment was no barrier to the firm’s performance- it announced a surge of more than 70 per cent in second-quarter profits in July last year, with a coronavirus-driven shift to remote work boosting demand for devices which used its memory chips.  

Lee's imprisonment was no barrier to the firm's performance- it announced a surge of more than 70 per cent in second-quarter profits in July last year, with a coronavirus-driven shift to remote work boosting demand for devices which used its memory chips. Pictured: Lee

Lee's imprisonment was no barrier to the firm's performance- it announced a surge of more than 70 per cent in second-quarter profits in July last year, with a coronavirus-driven shift to remote work boosting demand for devices which used its memory chips. Pictured: Lee

Lee’s imprisonment was no barrier to the firm’s performance- it announced a surge of more than 70 per cent in second-quarter profits in July last year, with a coronavirus-driven shift to remote work boosting demand for devices which used its memory chips. Pictured: Lee 

Samsung group is the largest of the family-controlled empires called chaebol which dominate business in South Korea. 

Mr Tikhonov said: ‘Samsung operated perfectly well without any pardon.

‘The pardon weakens rule of law, which potentially is, in fact, more detrimental than advantageous.’

However, a survey conducted last month by four poll groups revealed that 77 per cent of respondent favoured pardoning Lee, despite earlier protests.  

Political commentator Eom Kyeong-young, based in Seoul, said:  ‘(That support) is apparently due to the current economic situation, but people also seem to have thought in part that Lee was somewhat in a position where he could not shrug off pressure from the former administration.

‘While business groups including the Korea Chamber of Commerce & Industry and Korea Enterprises Federation welcomed the pardon for Lee, civil rights groups criticized Yoon’s pardons for businessmen.’

Meanwhile, the People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy said in a statement: ‘The Yoon Suk-yeol administration… is ultimately just aiming for a country only for the rich,’