INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
After serving a year in prison, Jay Y Lee was freed in February 2018.South Korea's highest court stunned the nation when it ordered
And it all came down to three horses.The Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the retrial of the Samsung Electronics vice chairman over bribery
charges, reviving uncertainty around the country's most important company just as it's navigating global trade turmoil
The court also sent for retrial the case of former president Park Geun-hye, the alleged beneficiary of that bribery.The matter connecting
them is a gift of three equines, which Korea's most senior judges have now ruled should be considered a bribe
minimum of five years in prison with no possibility of a suspended sentence.This more assertive judiciary stance may signal a change in the
way Korea's government scrutinizes its chaebol, the large family-controlled conglomerates like Samsung, and looks like a step toward
reining in their power and influence
For Samsung itself, this new chapter will at best be a distraction that the company can ill afford as it grapples with a downturn in its
major businesses of displays, memory chips and smartphones
At worst, it could deprive the company of a charismatic leader with a global network of useful connections and relationships."Horses became
a contentious issue for this trial because the value could sway the punishment against Lee," said Jungkeun Lim, attorney at TY - Partners in
"This is a matter of imprisoning Lee or not."The stock market hasn't been panicked by the news, with Samsung shares sliding by as much as
2014, the top court's written judgment said
Jay Y Lee, the de-facto heir of the Samsung Group, was asked for a horse for the daughter of Park's close friend and confidante Choi
Soon-sil, the document said, which Lee passed along and would later go on to take a personal interest in by checking for updates, according
to the court.The original 2017 trial centered on a controversial merger in 2015 between two Samsung affiliates that gave Jay Y Lee fresh
shares in Samsung C-T Corp., then a major shareholder of Samsung Electronics
Prosecutors argued that Lee sought to ensure the deal passed by indirectly bribing the president at the time
Jay Y Lee and Samsung have denied any wrongdoing.The ruling from the Supreme Court this week said that Lee and other Samsung executives
offered three horses -- named Salcido, Vitana and Rausing -- to former president Park's friend Choi
Jay Y Lee was aware of the close relationship between Park and Choi and secretly offered the horses to Choi's daughter Jung Yoo-ra, a
professional equestrian athlete, said the court documents.Jay Y Lee took a more active and urgent interest in the matter after a second
meeting where Park told him again to "buy a good horse," said the court
The details of the process were decided by Choi, while Jay Y Lee's main concern was to offer enough to satisfy Choi without it being so
much as to draw public scrutiny, according to court documents.The ensuing scandal shone a spotlight on the cozy relationship between chaebol
like Samsung and the Blue House, Korea's equivalent to the White House
It provoked protests in the streets of Seoul, Jay Y Lee was arrested and president Park was impeached.After serving a year in prison, Jay Y
Lee was freed in February 2018 by an appellate court decision that halved his five-year sentence and suspended it
That's the decision the Supreme Court has struck down, and the Samsung leader now faces a months-long retrial and a potential return to
jail.The earlier trial also looked into the issue of equine bribery, with Samsung accused of trying to conceal its gift of a 1-billion-won
horse by exchanging it for another animal -- effectively, laundering an equine
The prosecution presented a series of text messages, emails and memos among Jay Y Lee's lieutenants to support the allegation that Samsung
originally gave the daughter of Park's confidante a horse for athletic competitions
Once media scrutiny began, Samsung agreed to replace it with another called Vladimir, they said.Chief Justice Kim Myeong-su, reading out the
10-to-3 majority decision, ruled on Thursday that the lower court should have considered as possible bribes three horses --not just the one
-- and other financial support provided to a sports education center controlled by Choi
Under Korean law, any financial crimes above 500 crore won are subject to a minimum five-year sentence that cannot be suspended."People have
a lack of trust in the judiciary, which is seen as lenient toward those with money and power but harsh on the poor," said Kim Nam-geun, a
lawyer at People's Solidarity for Participation Democracy, a civic group based in Seoul
"This case should be a stepping stone to changing that perception."(This story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is
auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)Get Breaking news, live coverage, and Latest News from India and around the world on
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