South Korean prosecutors said yesterday they would question the Samsung heir again as part of a probe into a corruption and influence-peddling scandal that caused President Park Geun-hye to be impeached.
Jay Y Lee, Samsung Electronics vice chairman and the son of the Samsung group boss Lee Kun-hee, has been quizzed several times over his alleged role in the scandal that has rocked the nation.
The 48-year-old will be summoned again Monday morning, said a spokesman for the special team of prosecutors probing the affair.
Lee, described as a key suspect in the scandal, narrowly avoided being formally arrested last month when the prosecutors accused him of bribery involving nearly $40mn.
A Seoul court rejected the arrest warrant on grounds of insufficient evidence. Lee has effectively taken the helm of the group since his father suffered a heart attack in 2014. “We need to question Lee ... over other things we have discovered (after the arrest warrant was rejected),” said Lee Kyu-chul, spokesman for the prosecutors’ team.
The scandal centres on Park’s secret confidante Choi Soon-sil, who is accused of using her presidential ties to force local firms to “donate” tens of millions of dollars to two non-profit foundations which Choi allegedly used for personal gain.
Jay Y Lee ...legal tangle.
