Samsung Electronics denied the special counsel’s final briefing Monday that accused Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong of being a bribery suspect in the influence-peddling scandal that led to the impeachment trial of President Park Geun-hye.
“We disagree with the special prosecutor’s findings,” Samsung said in a statement.
The logo of Samsung in front of its office building (Yonhap)
“Samsung has not paid bribes nor made improper requests seeking favors. Future court proceedings will reveal the truth.”
Park Young-soo who lead the investigation team said the president had ordered her officials to pressure the National Pension Service to approve a controversial merger between two Samsung units in 2015 in exchange for business favors worth 43 billion won ($37 million) given to Choi Soon-sil, her longtime friend. The merger was seen as a crucial step for Lee to speed up his succession of the tech giant.
By Cho Chung-un (christory@heraldcorp.com)