(FreshAsFrankie) The high-profile case of Samsung heir and vice president Lee Jae-young has finally been concluded as he was sentenced to five years in prison after a South Korean court found him guilty of multiple charges of corruption.
BBC reports that Lee, 49, was accused of paying $36 million in bribes to various organizations ran by Choi Soon-sil in exchange for political favors.
Prosecutors argued that Lee was offered $38 million for the South Korean government for approval of a merger between two subsidiaries of Samsung in order extend his control over the “world’s largest smartphone maker.”
Lee was found guilty of embezzlement, bribery, hiding assets overseas and perjury in central district court in Seoul, as reported by South Korean news agency Yonhap.
Originally, prosecutors sought a 12-year sentence for the disgraced vice president. Lee denies all wrong doing and is expected to appeal the ruling.
Lee served as the acting head of the tech company since 2014, after his father Lee Kun-hee succumbed to a fatal heart attack. Lee Byung-chul, his grandfather, is the founder of the company.
Source: usatoday.com
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