Updated Sep 1, 2020 - World

Samsung's Jay Y. Lee indicted on stock manipulation charges

Rebecca Falconer

Jay Y. Lee, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics, holds a press conference at the company's headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, on May 6 — Samsung's Jay Y. Lee during a press conference at the company's headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, in May. Photo: Bloomberg/SeongJoon Cho/Pool/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Samsung Group leader Jay Y. Lee was indicted by South Korean prosecutors Tuesday on charges including stock manipulation and breach of trust, per Reuters.

Details: The 52-year-old's indictment is connected to a 2015 merger of two Samsung affiliates. An independent panel had earlier recommended against indicting him.

"The new indictment is related and centers on whether Lee and Samsung used illegal means to help him take control of the group founded by his grandfather," Bloomberg notes.

Of note: The Samsung heir is "separately accused of giving horses" to former president Park Geun-hye over the action, Reuters reports. Park was impeached and removed from office in 2017 after being arrested on corruption charges.

The big picture: Lee was sentenced to five years in prison in South Korea in 2017 after being found guilty of bribery, embezzlement and perjury. However, he was freed after serving one year when a court suspended his sentence. The country's Supreme Court last year overturned that ruling and ordered a retrial.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.

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Samsung's Jay Y. Lee indicted on stock manipulation charges

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