On February 3, the Seoul Central District Court (South Korea) declared Samsung Chairman Jay Y. Lee innocent of charges of accounting fraud and stock manipulation.
This is good news for the Samsung leader after many years of legal trouble. Previously, Lee was convicted of bribing former South Korean President Park Geun-hye and served a total of 18 months in prison from 2017 to 2021, before being pardoned in 2021.
In 2024, Lee faced charges related to an $8 billion merger of Samsung affiliates in 2015. Prosecutors accused him and other former CEOs of violating the Capital Markets Act to facilitate the merger, which cemented Lee's control of Samsung Electronics. They said the executives manipulated stock prices and caused losses to minority investors. Lee denied all charges and said the management followed proper procedures for the merger. Prosecutors had asked for a five-year prison sentence in late November 2023. However, the court acquitted Lee of these charges, although prosecutors appealed.
The case, which has dragged on for more than three years, is the latest legal challenge for Lee, who has struggled since his father died in 2014. Lee did not respond to an interview as he left the courthouse after the ruling. It is unclear whether prosecutors will appeal to South Korea's top court. Lee's lawyer, Kim You-jin, said he hopes the ruling will help him and others involved focus on their work as Samsung faces growing competition and sluggish stock performance.