Lee Myung-bak Reincarcerated Today... Will Be Released in Winter Approaching Age 96

Former President Lee Myung-bak / Photo by Jang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] Former President Lee Myung-bak, who was sentenced to 17 years in prison by the Supreme Court, will be re-incarcerated at Dongbu Detention Center on the 2nd.

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office will carry out the sentence for former President Lee, whose prison term was finalized by the Supreme Court on the 29th of last month on charges including embezzlement and bribery. Former President Lee will leave his residence in Nonhyeon-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, appear at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, and after identity and health checks, he will be transported by a vehicle provided by the prosecution to Dongbu Detention Center in Munjeong-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul. Dongbu Detention Center is where he was held for one year from March 22, 2018, when an arrest warrant was issued during the prosecution investigation, until he was released on bail in March of the following year.

Former President Lee is expected to be housed in a single cell at Dongbu Detention Center. Considering the cases of former presidents, he will be placed in solitary confinement and assigned a dedicated correctional officer, but procedures such as physical examination, confiscation of personal belongings, and photographing for the detention record (commonly known as a mugshot) will be conducted in the same manner as for ordinary inmates.

After incarceration, a classification review will be conducted. An inmate will be assigned a security level ranging from open treatment S1 to medium security S4, and then allocated to a prison with the corresponding security level. Since he is a sentenced prisoner with a finalized sentence, he will be transferred from the detention center to a prison where sentenced inmates reside. Upon this incarceration, former President Lee must serve the remaining 16 years of his sentence, excluding the one year he spent in custody during the investigation and trial process. At 80 years old by Korean age this year, he will only be able to be released when he reaches the winter of 96 years old.