Samsung Group, South Korea's top conglomerate, looks set to accelerate growth in semiconductors, biopharmaceutical and other next-generation technologies over the next five years.
The disgraced former president was on a list of people receiving special amnesty, and "pardon was granted to heal social conflicts and restore the local community," says Justice Minister Park Beom-kye.
The request of an arrest warrant for the heir of South Korean Samsung empire was declined by the court due to lack of sufficient probable cause over the controversial merger, but his retrial on charges of bribery and embezzlement continues.
South Korea's Supreme Court also ordered a new trial for Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong, who was convicted of offences including bribery and embezzlement in connection with the scandal that brought down former president Park Geun-hye.
Park Geun-hye, the South’s first female president, was impeached last year after huge street protests over a sprawling scandal, and was jailed for 24 years for corruption and abuse of power in April.
The verdict comes a year after Park Geun-hye was driven from office and arrested over a corruption scandal that saw months of massive street rallies calling for her ouster.
Lee, a conservative who governed from 2008 to 2013, is the latest South Korean leader to be entangled in scandals or other problems after leaving office.
The 66-year-old daughter of a former dictator, Park Geun-hye was dismissed in March 2017 and has now been in custody for almost a year.
Choi Soon-sil, a confidante of Park, was convicted of receiving bribes from South Korean conglomerates including Samsung and the Lotte Group.
The world's biggest memory chip and smartphone maker posted the profit despite the fact that its de facto leader was jailed for bribery and having faced a recall of its flagship Galaxy Note 7 device.
Jay Y Lee has been in detention since February and on trial for charges, including bribery and embezzlement as part of a scandal that led to the ouster of former president Park Geun-hye.
North Korea threatened to impose the death penalty on the South's former president Park Geun-Hye over an alleged plot to assassinate its leader Kim Jong-Un.
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