SEOUL: South Korean prosecutors on Monday demanded the heir to the Samsung empire be jailed for 12 years over his role in the corruption scandal that brought down the country’s last president.
At the final hearing in the trial of Lee Jae-Yong, the vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, prosecutors called him the “ultimate beneficiary” of crimes committed in the scandal, which culminated in the impeachment and dismissal of president Park Geun-Hye.
If the judges convict him and agree with the sentence recommendation it will be among the harshest penalties ever passed on a top executive of a chaebol, the business groups that dominate Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
Lee and four other executives of Samsung — the world’s biggest smartphone maker and the country’s largest firm — are accused of bribing Park’s powerful confidante with millions of dollars to win presidential favors and ease a controversial 2015 merger deal.
“The defendants were closely tied to power and sought personal gains,” the prosecutors said.
They sought a 12-year sentence for Lee, who is also charged with embezzlement and hiding assets overseas among other offenses, 10-year terms for three of his co-accused, and seven years for the last of the defendants in the trial.
Lee denied any wrongdoing.
“I once again deeply regret and apologize for causing a huge disappointment,” he told the court in his final statement, choking up and pausing at one point for a sip of water.
Lee has been in custody for the past six months, and said that during his time in detention he realized he had “many shortcomings” and there were some things he “failed to oversee” as a business leader.
But he insisted: “I never sought favors from the president for personal gain.”
Lee, 49, has effectively been at the helm of Samsung, which has revenues equivalent to about a fifth of the country’s GDP, since his father was left bedridden by a heart attack in 2014.
Taking the stand for the first time in his defense last week, he claimed he had no role in decision-making at the wider Samsung group and “mostly listened to other executives.”
His lawyers say the allegations were unjustified and the defendants never sought anything in return for the money that was donated.
The verdicts will be given on August 25.
A Samsung Group spokeswoman said it had no comment on the prosecutors’ request.
Despite the arrest of its de facto leader and a humiliating recall fiasco of its flagship smartphone last year, Samsung Electronics shares have risen strongly in recent months on soaring profits, driven by strong demand for its memory chips.
They closed down 0.25 percent on Seoul’s stock market on Monday.
One of the favors Lee allegedly sought from Park was state approval for a controversial merger of two Samsung units in 2015, seen as a key step to ensuring a smooth power transfer to him.
The deal was opposed by shareholders who said it wilfully undervalued shares of one of the firms. But it eventually went through after the national pension fund — a major Samsung shareholder — approved it.
“The special prosecutors failed to give any evidence for the existence of such a succession operation,” Lee’s lawyers argued at Monday’s hearing.
Choi Gee-Sung, a former Samsung Electronics vice chairman and a co-defendant, reiterated his claims of responsibility, saying the allegations were the result of his own decision to “protect the company” from Park’s confidante Choi Soon-Sil.
He was head of Samsung Group’s Future Strategy Office — which oversaw the vast group’s major business decisions — until he stepped down in February, and is accused of approving a payment of millions of euros to finance the confidante’s daughter.
“I feel heavy responsibility as the FSO chief who oversaw all business dealings,” Choi told the court.
If Lee is found guilty it will be a blow for Park, who is on trial separately on 18 charges including bribery, coercion and abuse of power following her dismissal from office in March.
Park was formally impeached after public uproar over her questionable ties with confidante Choi Soon-Sil sparked mass nationwide protests for months.
Choi Soon-Sil is also on trial for using her presidential ties to force top South Korean firms including Samsung to “donate” nearly $70 million to non-profit foundations which she controlled.
S. Korea prosecutors seek 12 years’ jail for Samsung heir
S. Korea prosecutors seek 12 years’ jail for Samsung heir
Geoeconomic confrontation tops global risks in 2026: WEF report
- Also armed conflict, extreme climate, public polarization, AI
- None ‘a foregone conclusion,’ says WEF’s MD Saadia Zahidi
DUBAI: Geoeconomic confrontation has emerged as the top global risk this year, followed by state-based armed conflict, according to a new World Economic Forum report.
The Global Risks Report 2026, released on Wednesday, found that both risks climbed eight places year-on-year, underscoring a sharp deterioration in the global outlook amid increased international competition.
The top five risks are geoeconomic confrontation (18 percent of respondents), state-based armed conflict (14 percent), extreme weather events (8 percent), societal polarization (7 percent) and misinformation and disinformation (7 percent).
The WEF’s Managing Director Saadia Zahidi said the report “offers an early warning system as the age of competition compounds global risks — from geoeconomic confrontation to unchecked technology to rising debt — and changes our collective capacity to address them.
“But none of these risks are a foregone conclusion.”
The report assesses risks across three timeframes: immediate (2026); short-to-medium term (next two years); and long term (next 10 years).
Economic risks show the largest overall increase in the two-year outlook, with both economic downturn and inflation jumping eight positions.
Misinformation and disinformation rank fifth this year but rise to second place in the two-year outlook and fourth over the 10-year horizon.
The report suggests this reflects growing anxiety around the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence, with adverse outcomes linked to AI surging from 30th place in the two-year timeframe to fifth in the 10-year outlook.
Uncertainty dominates the global risk outlook, according to the report.
Surveyed leaders and experts view both the short- and long-term outlook negatively, with 50 percent expecting a turbulent or stormy global environment over the next two years, rising to 57 percent over the next decade.
A further 40 percent and 32 percent, respectively, describe the outlook as unsettled across the two- and 10-year timeframes, while just 1 percent anticipate a calm global outlook in either period.
Environmental risks ease slightly in the short-term rankings. Extreme weather fell from second to fourth place and pollution from sixth to ninth. Meanwhile, critical changes to Earth systems and biodiversity loss dropped seven and five positions, respectively.
However, over the next decade, environmental threats re-emerge as the most severe, with extreme weather, biodiversity loss, and critical changes to Earth systems topping the global risk rankings.
Looking ahead over the next decade, around 75 percent of respondents anticipate a turbulent or stormy environmental outlook, making it the most pessimistic assessment across all risk categories.
Zahidi said that “the challenges highlighted in the report underscore both the scale of the potential perils we face and our shared responsibility to shape what comes next.”
Despite the gloomy outlook, Zahidi signaled a positive shift in global cooperation.
“It is also clear that new forms of global cooperation are already unfolding even amid competition, and the global economy is demonstrating resilience in the face of uncertainty.”
Now in its 21st year, the Global Risks Report highlights a core message: global risks cannot be managed without cooperation.
As competition intensifies, rebuilding trust and new forms of collaboration will be critical, with the report stressing that today’s decisions will shape future outcomes.
The report was released ahead of WEF’s annual meeting, which will be held in Davos from Jan. 19 to 23.
