An arrest warrant for Samsung’s Jay Lee gets approval after he managed to ward off a request for an arrest warrant from the Seoul Central District Court last month, but has now been taken into custody on orders from that same court. He was reportedly taken in on Friday, the same day that the warrant was approved, and taken to the Seoul Detention Center. Lee stands accused of having a role in the bribery and corruption scandal that resulted in the impeachment of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye, with allegations stating that Lee had greased palms to push through a merger that gave his branch of the family more control over the whole of Samsung by increasing the scale and power of the part of the company that he heads up.
The Special Prosecutor’s Office that got the warrant pushed through claims that they have uncovered more evidence against Lee, and plan to formally bring additional charges against him before he finally stands trial at a date yet to be determined. Current accusations say that Lee had a hand in bribery in the amount of around 43 billion won aimed at Choi Soon-sil, a friend of Lee’s who was allegedly able to influence the South Korean government to look the other way on the proposed Samsung merger. It is worth noting that some of that money allegedly went to supporting Choi’s daughter, who was pursuing a career involving horses. Choi’s daughter is currently detained in Denmark as a wanted figure in South Korea.
The same court that approved an arrest warrant for Lee denied a request from the Special Prosecutor’s Office aimed at Samsung Electronics President Park Sang-jin, who stands accused of similar crimes to those that Lee stands accused of. For now, there has been no word from Samsung on these matters, no word from the Special Prosecutor’s Office about the denial of a warrant for Park, and no word on exactly when Lee’s trial may begin. Former South Korean President Park Geun-hye, meanwhile, finds herself stripped of power for an indefinite period as authorities investigate the ongoing case and decide whether to uphold her impeachment or allow her to return to office.