Conflict Between Choo Mi-ae, Lee Seong-yoon, and Yoon Seok-yeol Pushes Lee Jae-yong's Conclusion to the Backseat

Lee Jae-yong, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Jo] The prosecution's decision on whether to indict Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong is expected to be significantly delayed. This is due to the internal delay in proper decision-making within the prosecution amid the conflict between Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol, Seoul Central District Prosecutor Lee Sung-yoon, and Justice Minister Chu Mi-ae over the investigation into the 'media collusion' allegations.

According to the legal community on the 8th, Prosecutor General Yoon and Prosecutor Lee are scheduled to hold their regular weekly report meeting in the afternoon. Although the Prosecutor General and the Seoul Central District Prosecutor meet every Wednesday at the Prosecutor General's office at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to discuss the handling direction of important cases at the Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office, this meeting will again be replaced by a written report, just like last week. With their face-to-face meeting once again canceled, discussions between the prosecution leadership regarding the indictment of Vice Chairman Lee are expected to be difficult for the time being. A prosecution official said, "It's an important case, so it can't be reported just in writing."

Until now, the prosecution has generally made final decisions within a week after the recommendation of the Investigation Review Committee. However, more than ten days have passed since the committee meeting on the 26th of last month regarding the case involving Vice Chairman Lee and others, but no conclusion has yet been reached.

The delay in the final decision is believed to be influenced by the imminent announcement of Prosecutor General Yoon's position following Justice Minister Chu's exercise of her command authority over the investigation into the media collusion allegations. Since there is an urgent issue to resolve, the prosecution lacks the capacity to make a final disposition on the case involving Vice Chairman Lee and others. A lawyer with a prosecution background said, "In a situation where even the Prosecutor General's position is being discussed, they will not rush to decide on important cases like the one involving Vice Chairman Lee."

Another reason analyzed is the conflict between Prosecutor General Yoon and Prosecutor Lee over handling the media collusion allegations case. Prosecutor Lee publicly opposed Prosecutor General Yoon's request on the 30th of last month to suspend the procedure of the expert investigation advisory group convened for the media collusion investigation. Furthermore, on the 1st, he did not attend the Prosecutor General's weekly report meeting and replaced it with a written report.

The Economic Crime Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office (Chief Prosecutor Lee Bok-hyun), which is investigating the case involving Vice Chairman Lee and others, is comprehensively reviewing the investigation results and the recommendations of the Investigation Review Committee. The investigation team has made several interim reports to the prosecution leadership, including on whether to indict Vice Chairman Lee, but has not reached the final reporting stage. A lawyer in Seocho-dong said, "The investigation team can only consider the current situation inside and outside the prosecution," adding, "It will probably take some time before a conclusion is reached."