Lee Jae-yong, Samsung’s Vice Chairman arrested over bribary charges

The de facto leader of Samsung, Lee Jae-yong, was arrested Friday on bribery charges. Mr. Lee, Samsung’s vice chairman, was taken to a jail outside Seoul, the capital, soon after a judge at the Seoul Central District Court issued an arrest warrant early Friday.

The heart of the matter:
Mr. Lee is accused of paying $36 million in bribes to President Park Geun-hye’s secretive confidante, Choi Soon-sil, in return for political favors. Those are alleged to include government support for a merger of two Samsung affiliates in 2015 that helped Mr. Lee inherit corporate control from his incapacitated father, Lee Kun-hee, the chairman.
Mr. Lee is the first head of the conglomerate ever to be arrested on corruption charges. Other charges against him include embezzlement, illegal transfer of property abroad and committing perjury during a parliamentary hearing.
The 48-year-old Lee, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS), was taken into custody at the Seoul Detention Centre, where he had awaited the court's decision following a day-long, closed-door hearing that ended on Thursday evening.

The judge's decision was announced at about 5:30 a.m. (2030 GMT) on Friday, more than 10 hours after Lee, the sprawling conglomerate's third-generation leader, had left the court.

Samsung's take on this matter:

We will do our best to ensure that the truth is revealed in future court proceedings," the Samsung Group said in a brief statement after Lee's arrest.

While Lee's detention is not expected to hamper day-to-day operation of Samsung Group companies, which are run by professional managers, experts have said it could affect strategic decision-making by South Korea's biggest conglomerate.

"There are more than 100,000 of us (in Samsung Electronics). It wouldn't make sense for a company of that size to not function properly just because the owner is away. It's business as usual for us," said an engineer at Samsung Electronics.

It is not like Samsung's business will be grinding to a halt. There are many smart people at the company," former Samsung Electronics executive Kim Yong-serk said recently.

Mr. Lee is accused of paying $36 million in bribes to President Park Geun-hye’s secretive confidante