Seoul — The five-year sentence passed down on Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong on Friday for bribery and other offences is the longest given to a South Korean tycoon in recent years. But prosecutors had demanded a 12-year prison term for the vice-chairman of Samsung Electronics in connection with the corruption scandal that brought down president Park Geun-hye. The country’s powerful, family-run business empires — called chaebols — have close political connections, and a long history of their top figures being charged with bribery, embezzlement or tax evasion, among other offences, but even if convicted, many see their sentences significantly reduced on appeal or suspended, leaving only a few actually spending significant time behind bars. Some have even received presidential pardons in recognition of their "contribution to the national economy". Such outcomes have driven increasing public frustration with cosy and corrupt ties between regulators and businesses in Asia’s fourth-largest eco...
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