Lee Jae-yong and Samsung Investigation Deliberation Committee's Current Affairs Subcommittee Begins... Conclusion Expected Around 7 PM (Comprehensive)

On the 8th, Lee Jae-yong, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics, who is under prosecution investigation for allegations of illegal succession of management rights related to the merger of the former Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries, as well as accounting fraud allegations involving Samsung Biologics, is entering the courtroom to attend the warrant hearing at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] The Prosecution Investigation Deliberation Committee (PIDC) special committee, which is examining whether the prosecution's indictment of Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong (52) and others is appropriate, began its session on the morning of the 26th.

The PIDC held the special committee meeting at 10:30 a.m. at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-dong, Seoul, with 15 special committee members selected from the legal community, academia, media, culture, and arts in attendance.

The committee is deliberating whether it is appropriate to indict Vice Chairman Lee, former Samsung Future Strategy Office Strategy Team Leader Kim Jong-jung, and Samsung C&T Corporation on charges including unfair trading and market manipulation under the Capital Markets Act, and violations of the Act on External Audit of Stock Companies.

The attending members reviewed written opinions submitted by the lead prosecutor and applicants, listened to statements from both sides, and held a Q&A session. It is expected that after internal discussions, a final conclusion will be reached around 7 p.m.

From the prosecution side, Deputy Chief Prosecutor Lee Bok-hyun of the Economic Crime Division at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, Deputy Chief Prosecutor Choi Jae-hoon who conducted the face-to-face investigation with Vice Chairman Lee, and Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-chul from the Uijeongbu District Prosecutors' Office attended.

They focused on persuading the committee members that illegal acts were committed during the merger process of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries, and that Vice Chairman Lee either directly ordered or at least tacitly approved them.

On Samsung's side, prominent special investigation unit veteran lawyers including former Busan District Prosecutors' Office Chief Kim Ki-dong and former Seoul Western District Prosecutors' Office Chief Lee Dong-yeol attended.

The defense plans to argue that no illegal acts occurred during the merger process and that Vice Chairman Lee was not involved at all. They are also expected to emphasize that financial authorities and civil courts previously concluded there were no issues with the merger process.

If opinions among the committee members are not unified during internal discussions, a voting process will be conducted. Instead of former Supreme Court Justice Yang Chang-soo, who declined the chairmanship due to his acquaintance with Samsung officials, the acting chairperson elected from among the 15 members will preside over the meeting. Fourteen members, excluding the acting chairperson, will participate in the vote, and a majority vote will determine the outcome.

The committee will prepare a deliberation opinion report containing the final conclusion and send it to the lead prosecutor. The lead prosecutor respects the deliberation opinion when deciding whether to indict but is not legally bound to follow it. However, the prosecution has complied with the results of all eight previous PIDC meetings.

If the special committee issues a 'prosecution opinion,' the prosecution investigation is expected to regain momentum and accelerate rapidly. Conversely, if a 'non-prosecution opinion' is issued, the prosecution will face a difficult decision between continuing the investigation and dropping the charges.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.