Court sentences ex-President Lee Myung-bak to 15 years behind bars for corruption
- 6 years ago
Lee Myung-bak, a former South Korean president, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison... after he was found guilty of multiple corruption charges.
Cha Sang-mi reports.
A Seoul court has convicted former President Lee Myung-bak on seven charges, including bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power.
The judge sentenced him on Friday to 15 years behind bars.
He also has to pay a fine of over 11 million U.S. dollars and forfeit more than 7 million dollars.
Prosecutors had asked for a 20-year sentence and a fine of over 13 million dollars.
Seoul Central District Court ruled that Lee was the real owner of DAS, an auto parts maker that he claimed belonged to his brother, and which was used for embezzlement.
The 76-year-old was also convicted of accepting some 13 million dollars in bribes from the nation's biggest companies and state agencies, including tech giant Samsung Electronics and the National Intelligence Service.
The court found Lee had received over five million dollars from Samsung in the form of legal fees on his behalf for a lawsuit in the U.S.
The verdict said the retainer was paid in exchange for a presidential pardon for Samsung chairman Lee Kun-hee, who was under investigation for tax evasion.
In her verdict, the judge said the defendant had embezzled some 22 million U.S. dollars as de-facto owner of DAS, and that he let down not just his supporters but the entire country.
The verdict was broadcast live, but Lee wasn't there because of his poor health, according to his lawyers, and in protest against the decision to broadcast the verdict.
The sentencing comes nearly six months after the former president was indicted in April on 16 corruption charges.
Lee Myung-bak served as president from 2008 to 2013, and has been held in a detention center since March.
This makes Lee the fourth former South Korean president to be criminally convicted and imprisoned, after his successor Park Geun-hye, who is serving 25 years for a separate power abuse scandal that led to her ouster in early 2017.
Cha Sang-mi, Arirang News.
Cha Sang-mi reports.
A Seoul court has convicted former President Lee Myung-bak on seven charges, including bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power.
The judge sentenced him on Friday to 15 years behind bars.
He also has to pay a fine of over 11 million U.S. dollars and forfeit more than 7 million dollars.
Prosecutors had asked for a 20-year sentence and a fine of over 13 million dollars.
Seoul Central District Court ruled that Lee was the real owner of DAS, an auto parts maker that he claimed belonged to his brother, and which was used for embezzlement.
The 76-year-old was also convicted of accepting some 13 million dollars in bribes from the nation's biggest companies and state agencies, including tech giant Samsung Electronics and the National Intelligence Service.
The court found Lee had received over five million dollars from Samsung in the form of legal fees on his behalf for a lawsuit in the U.S.
The verdict said the retainer was paid in exchange for a presidential pardon for Samsung chairman Lee Kun-hee, who was under investigation for tax evasion.
In her verdict, the judge said the defendant had embezzled some 22 million U.S. dollars as de-facto owner of DAS, and that he let down not just his supporters but the entire country.
The verdict was broadcast live, but Lee wasn't there because of his poor health, according to his lawyers, and in protest against the decision to broadcast the verdict.
The sentencing comes nearly six months after the former president was indicted in April on 16 corruption charges.
Lee Myung-bak served as president from 2008 to 2013, and has been held in a detention center since March.
This makes Lee the fourth former South Korean president to be criminally convicted and imprisoned, after his successor Park Geun-hye, who is serving 25 years for a separate power abuse scandal that led to her ouster in early 2017.
Cha Sang-mi, Arirang News.