Thirteen Weeks Into Samsung Bribes Trial, There's No Smoking Gun

The trial of Jay Y. Lee, heir to the Samsung Group empire, has featured thousands of pages of documents and hundreds of hours of testimony from dozens of witnesses. But, according to Bloomberg, experts say one thing is missing: a smoking gun.

The billionaire stands accused of paying bribes to South Korean President Park Geun-hye and then trying to conceal it, charges that he has denied. With the trial set to continue for another couple of months, the prosecution plans to call the nation’s former leader to testify as it seeks to prove Lee handed over millions of dollars to get a contentious merger approved.

“It’s true, core evidence is missing,“ said Hong Jung-seok, a lawyer who previously worked with the special prosecution during their initial probe of Lee. “The best option for prosecutors is to make their argument as convincing as possible based on the indirect evidence they have.“

Dubbed the “ trial of the century“ because of its link to an influence-peddling scandal that brought down the president and ensnared the country’s most powerful corporations, hearings have been marked by terse exchanges between prosecutors and the judge. Connecting the dots has been a time-consuming effort, extending past an initial May deadline for a verdict, with the prosecutors yet to finish their case before the defense team gets to present theirs.

If the trial isn’t wrapped up by the end of August, the six-month anniversary of Lee’s arrest, then the tycoon, who is also vice chairman of smartphone maker Samsung Electronics, must be set free in the absence of new charges.

Prosecutors allege Lee promised money to an equestrian foundation controlled by Park’s friend Choi Soon-sil. The payoff was designed to secure government backing for the contentious 2015 merger of Samsung affiliates that helped cement his control over the electronics business, they said. A former health minister has been convicted of abusing his power during the deal.

Among the evidence cited since the trial began in March are text messages from mobile phones used by Samsung executives and hand-written notes by a former presidential secretary. Those records show South Korea’s biggest company liaised with senior government officials, including regulators and presidential aides, on a variety of issues. Samsung even once sought to influence officials by giving them new Galaxy smartphones, according to the testimony of one executive.

Still, details of what Lee and Park discussed in their meetings from 2014 to 2016 have been scant. While Lee hasn’t taken the stand, he has acknowledged meeting with the former president but denied any wrongdoing. His lawyers said Samsung’s communications with government took place within legal boundaries and were part of its routine activities.

The prosecution hasn’t finished presenting its case, with Park and Lee yet to testify. The former leader was removed from office in March after lawmakers impeached her in December following months of protests over alleged corruption. She was indicted in April with South Korea electing a new president the next month.