Korean president frees Samsung boss from bribery charges

Samsung boss Lee Jae-Yong, who was sentenced to jail for 2.5 years due to bribery charges, has now been pardoned by the South Korean president. He can now formally take over the reins of his vice president position at Samsung.

Download Sammy Fans App

However, Lee is released on parole and he will need to take permission to travel abroad for business meetings. He apologized to the Korean public today and promised to “start a new.” In a statement, he said, “I will try harder to give back to society and grow together.”

Join SammyFans on Telegram

Earlier, the Samsung boss was accused of bribery charges against an associate of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye to force the merger of Samsung C&T and Chell Industries. For this, Lee spent 18 months in prison before he received a pardon.

Follow Sammy Fans on Google News

During that prison time period, the vice president was restrained from taking his job and a proper title on the company’s representatives. Therefore, he only got reports from company officials but now he can take over his position on the board.

Lee’s pardon will come into effect on August 15, 2022. It’s expected that Lee’s release and his contribution to Samsung will improve the company’s business and so South Korea’s economy. He could make major strategic decisions, ranging from governance reforms and major chipmaking deals.

Samsung is facing several problems due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, weak consumer demand, and supply chain issues that got aggravated due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Its semiconductor design and foundry arms have also faced business challenges, and Lee’s pardon would allow him to make decisions quickly to improve the company’s size. It’s worth mentioning that after Lee’s release announcement, Samsung’s shares rose 1.3% in their hometown.