Almost a year after it was arrested by prosecutors on bribery charges on high-level perjury and embezzlement charges, Samsung's vice chairman of the board, Jay Y. Lee, was released from prison. Although he was sentenced to a prison sentence of 5 years, following the appeal, he received a sentence of 2 and a half years, with suspension, and a probationary period of 4 years.
Jay Y. Lee will be released from prison today, or in the following days, the court taking the decision that he should not be imprisoned anymore after it was proven that the accusations of the prosecutors are true. Practically, Jay Y. Lee will be able to resume his role as head of the Samsung company, being assigned the position of vice president of the board of directors.
Jay Y. Lee is the son of Lee Kun-hee, the chairman of Samsung's board of directors, but due to an illness that made him unable to perform his duties, his son took control of the board of directors. Jay Y. Lee will become its president after his father dies, so he will lead Samsung until he decides to leave the company.
"A South Korean high court unexpectedly let Samsung Electronics Co. Vice Chairman Jay Y. Lee walks free after suspending his prison sentence for bribery, in a stunning reversal that raises questions about the government's ability to reform powerful chaebol."
Jay Y. Lee was arrested in a huge scandal in South Korea, he was accused of bribing the country's president to use his influence in favor of the Samsung company. Despite the whole scandal, the Samsung company had the best financial results in recent years, a sign that the problems did not matter at all for global consumers.
