is accused of controlling some actions in a controversial fusion of affiliates, which helped to consolidate even more his control.
This case was first tried at an appeals court where he was found not guilty in February of accounting fraud and also for stock manipulation by the Seoul Central District Court. But, the prosecutors didn’t agree with this statement and decided to appeal the ruling of his innocence.
This appeals case comes less than 10 months after Jay Lee and other 13 former Samsung executives were initially accused of manipulating the stock prices and committing accounting fraud in relation to the merger of Samsung subsidiaries which managed to increase the control over the Samsung Electronics giant.
According to a media local, the final decision for the Samsung appeal case is most likely to be public early next year in January or February.
It should be mentioned that Samsung's appeal is important for two main reasons. The first one is because this period represents for the Samsung giant a tough period due to the fact that the company is facing a slowing in its profits. The second reason it signals the country’s gradual efforts to improve the corporate structures, a move that can have a significant impact on the global consumer electronics industry and also on Korea’s technology ecosystem.
“The defendant damaged the capital market’s foundation for the group’s succession… The ruling in this case will serve as a reference point for restructuring chaebol companies, [which is a large, family-controlled business conglomerate in South Korea], and accounting in the future.”, the South Korean prosecutors stated.
Also, the prosecutors stated that granting mercy to the defendants would eventually allow the merger to proceed with a method that would only prioritize its interests, using various unlawful and convenient actions without a doubt.
Jay Lee, the Samsung Chief, was also accused in the past of other actions, but the most recent is from last year, similar to this request, the South Korean prosecutors demanded that Lee be sentenced to five years in jail and receive a fine of 500 million KRW over the charges of violating the Capital Market Act. It seems that the Capital Market Act was related to an $8 billion merger of various Samsung Electronics affiliated companies in 2015.
It remains to be seen how this issue will affect the Samsung Chief and if he will execute his 5-year sentence. Until then, stay tuned for more updates!
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