Judge trying Samsung heir tied to Choi Soon-sil

Alleged links have been found between the judge presiding over the trial of Samsung Group heir apparent Lee Jae-yong and Choi Soon-sil, sparking controversy over the fairness of the trial.

Choi is a central figure in the scandal that led to President Park Geun-hye's impeachment. Samsung Group’s de facto chief is suspected of having offered kickbacks to Choi-controlled foundations in return for political favors from the the Park administration.

Judge Lee Young-hoon, who is currently trying Lee and other Samsung officials, is the son-in-law of Lim Jung-pyung, 76, who is close to Choi, an opposition lawmaker revealed on a radio program.

“When I went to Germany to dig into the Choi Soon-sil scandal, I was told that a doctor, surnamed Lim, asked a Korean elder there to help Choi,” Ahn said, calling Lim a “guardian” for Choi.

“Lim is the father-in-law of the senior justice, surnamed Lee, who is trying Lee on charges of bribery.”

“Though it might not have been intentional, there must be controversy over the fairness of the trial,” An added.

The Seoul Central District Court confirmed that the justice is the son-in-law of Lim, who in the 1980s introduced a young Choi to his acquaintance residing in Germany to help her settle there.

“Lee did not know that his father-in-law had a link to the Choi family until media reports surfaced,” the court explained. “It is not true that Lim had served as a guardian for Choi.”

Lim met Choi Tae-min, Choi Soon-sil’s father and a religious cult leader, only once. He has not been in touch with the Choi family since Park Chung-hee, Park‘s father and former president, was assassinated in 1979, the court added.

Lim is an honorary professor at Dankook University and has also served on the board of directors for the Jeongsoo Scholarship Foundation set up by Park Chung-hee for about four years. It was also once headed by Park Geun-hye.

The court said it is not considering reassigning the case to another judge. It allocated the bribery case to the current Justice Lee through an agreement, not random selection.

The bribery case was initially assigned to Judge Cho Eui-yeon, who once rejected an arrest warrant for the Samsung Group’s de facto leader. The court changed the judge upon Cho’s request.

The Samsung Group’s de facto leader is being tried for bribery, embezzlement and perjury.

Lee is suspected of offering bribes of 43 billion won ($38 million) to Choi in exchange for the state pension agency’s backing of the merger of two Samsung affiliates. The merger was a crucial step for the young tycoon -- the only son of bedridden Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee -- to tighten his grip on his family’s massive corporate empire.

He is also accused of hiding assets abroad, concealing profits made from illegal business activities and committing perjury during a parliamentary hearing on the corruption scandal.

By Ock Hyun-ju (laeticia.ock@heraldcorp.com)