This file photo taken on January 18, 2021 shows Lee Jae-yong (C), vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, arriving at a court for a trial in his bribery scandal involving former South Korean president Park Geun-hye in Seoul. Lee Jae-yong, the jailed de facto leader of the giant Samsung group, will be released early on parole this week, South Korea's justice ministry said on August 9, 2021. (Photo: AFP)

The jailed de facto leader of the giant Samsung group will be released early on parole this week, South Korea's justice ministry said Monday.

Samsung Electronics vice-chairman Lee Jae-yong "is among those granted parole in consideration of the national economic situation due to the prolonged coronavirus pandemic", justice minister Park Beom-kye told reporters.