Samsung Electronics' vice chairman, Jay Y. Lee, arriving at court in Seoul, South Korea. Reuters Jay Y. Lee, the vice chairman and de facto leader of Samsung, has been sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison. Lee was originally given a five-year sentence in 2017 — and spent a year in jail — but that punishment was cut short and suspended in 2018. He was accused of bribing a friend of a South Korean president to win support for his succession at Samsung. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Samsung's vice chairman and de facto leader, Jay Y.