Former South Korean President Lee Myung-bak jailed for 15 years and fined $11.5m on multiple corruption charges Friday Oct 05,2018

Former South Korean President Lee Myung-bak has been jailed for 15 years and fined $11.5m on multiple corruption charges. 

A court in the capital, Seoul, handed down the verdict on Friday Oct 05,2018, making Lee the latest of a string of high-profile political and business leaders tainted by corruption charges. 

During the televised trial, the Seoul District Court ruled that the 76-year-old is the de facto owner of his brother's company, DAS, which is at the centre of the corruption investigation.

Lee, president of South Korea from 2008 to 2013, was arrested in March on charges including bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power.

He has denied any wrongdoing and claimed to be the victim of political "revenge".

The former president did not attend Friday's hearing in protest against the court's decision to broadcast the event live, according to Yonhap news agency. AFP news agency reported Lee's absence was due to ill health.

Earlier, prosecutors demanded a 20-year sentence for Lee, who was also found guilty of having accepted a payment of $5.85m from Samsung Electronics for a US lawsuit involving DAS.