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Former President Lee Myung-bak heads to the Seoul High Court for his sentencing on Feb. 19 (Kim Jung-hyo, staff photographer)

Former President Lee Myung-bak was taken into court custody once again after being sentenced to 17 years in prison in his appellate trial following indictment on charges of embezzling tens of billions of won as the de facto owner of the auto parts company DAS and accepting over 10 billion won (US$8.34 million) in bribes, including payment of legal costs on his behalf. This comes 350 days after he was released on bail during his second trial in March of last year.

The first criminal division of Seoul High Court under Judge Hon. Jeong Jun-yeong sentenced Lee on Feb. 19 to 12 years in prison and a fine of 13 billion won (US$10.84 million) for bribery and five additional years on other counts including embezzlement. The sentence was increased by two years from the first trial as the amounts cited in the bribery and embezzlement charges rose by around 800 million won (US$667,189) and 600 million won (US$500,391), respectively. Seventeen years in prison does not seem like enough for someone who lied about his ownership of DAS for over 20 years -- even assuming the presidency during that time -- and who has never once apologized to the public for accepting bribes from major corporations and politicians. We urge him to show some belated remorse.

On Feb. 19, the court found Lee guilty of embezzling 25.2 billion won (US$21.02 million) in slush funds as de facto owner of DAS and of accepting 9.3 billion won (US$7.76 million) in bribes, including having Samsung pay legal costs for DAS on his behalf. The court recognized all counts of Lee’s embezzlement of secret funds for close to 20 years, using money from the time of DAS’ establishment to fill key positions with his own people and receive regular reports on the company’s management. During this time, Lee served as a National Assembly member, the mayor of Seoul, and eventually president of the Republic of Korea -- yet he consistently deceived the public with his denials whenever he was asked about DAS’ true ownership. He continued to deny it even after associates and relatives unanimously admitted during the investigation and trial that he was DAS’ de facto owner.

Not only that, but the court’s revelations about Lee “attributing the criminal charges to false accounts by DAS employees, government employees who worked with him, and Samsung employees, despite his clear responsibility and without showing any sign of remorse or sense of responsibility” make one question the basic common sense of someone who once was the president. Since the outset, he has been alternating between a political battle and his legal one, first with his refusal to cooperate with the investigation from prison or appear at his first hearing amid claims of “political retribution,” and then with his request of a laundry list of witnesses at the second trial. In the end, however, he was unable to avoid punishment by the court.

The director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS) during Lee’s presidency is currently serving time after receiving a hefty sentence on charges of recruiting agency staff and private citizens in an online campaign to influence public opinion and elections, maneuvering to sabotage the political opposition and suppress media criticism. The head of the National Police Agency was sentenced to two years in his first trial for using the police for another online sabotage campaign. It’s become difficult to even quantify the extent of Lee’s crimes while in office in sentencing terms.

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]