SEOUL: SouthKorea's top court ordered new trials yesterday for former president ParkGeun-hye and Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong over the corruption scandal that broughther down, in a blow to the world's biggest smartphone and memory chip maker.Park is serving a 25-year jail term after being convicted last year on briberyand abuse of power charges. But Lee,whose sprawling conglomerate is vital to the health of the world's 11th-largesteconomy, had many of his convictions quashed on appeal in February 2018 and wasreleased after being given a suspended sentence.
Their trialshighlighted shady links between big business and politics in South Korea, withPark and her close friend Choi Soon-sil accused of taking bribes from corporatebigwigs in exchange for preferential treatment. South Korea's Supreme Court onThursday sent all three of their cases back for new proceedings, saying thaterrors had been made in the judgments. After a 10-month trial -- in which sheboycotted most of the proceedings in protest at being held in custody -- Parkwas convicted in April last year of receiving or demanding more than $20million from conglomerates, sharing secret state documents,"blacklisting" artists critical of her policies, and firing officialswho resisted her abuses of power.
She was sentencedto 24 years, later extended for an additional 12 months. But the Supreme Courtruled that under the country's public official election act, courts must rule separatelyon bribery accusations when incumbent or former presidents face multiplecriminal charges. "We send the case back to the Seoul High Court,"said chief justice Kim Myeong-su. South Korean media warned that the rulingmight not work out in her favour, as if she is convicted again in two separateverdicts she could face a longer total sentence in total.
'Square one'
Samsung is by farthe biggest of the family-controlled conglomerates that dominate business inSouth Korea, and crucial to the country's financial health. Lee isvice-chairman of its flagship subsidiary Samsung Electronics, and his casecentered on millions of dollars the group paid Choi, allegedly for governmentfavors such as ensuring a smooth transition for him to succeed his ailingfather.
He was initiallyjailed for five years in 2017 before his successful appeal, which chief justiceKim said "misunderstood the law on bribery". In a key section ofThursday's ruling, the court said three horses worth 3.4 billion won (US$2.8 million)that Samsung Group donated for the equestrian training of Choi's daughter didamount to bribes.
It was notimmediately clear whether Lee would be returned to prison pending his new trialbut analysts said the ruling could complicate management at SamsungElectronics. Yonhap news agency quoted a high-ranking Samsung official callingthe ruling the firm's "worst nightmare" and adding it increased"uncertainties at the leadership when the company is already going throughhard times".