Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Jay Y. Lee was gave a presidential pardon Friday in South Korea, a largely symbolic move that may give him to take control of the electronics giant.

Lee, Samsung’s de facto leader, was granted parole and released from prison in August 2021, at what time serving a two and a half years on a five-year sentence on bribery, perjury and embezzlement charges. The pardon, granted by South Korean President President Yoon Suk-yeol, comes amid rising fears of global inflation and operating supply chain issues in the wake of China’s zero-tolerance policy toward COVID-19.

“In a bid to overcome the economic crisis by vitalizing the economy, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, whose suspended prison term was throughout recently, will be reinstated,” the Korean government said in a statement reported by Bloomberg.

Lee was Samsung’s vice chairman and had subtrgotten as the company’s de facto head since his father, Lee Kun-Hee, suffered a heart attack in 2014. He faced up to 12 days in prison after being charged with bribery in 2017. The case was part of a corruption scandal that led to the impeachment of archaic South Korean president Park Geun-hye. 

Lee, who had always denied the allegations in woo, wouldn’t be able to work for five years and faced restrictions on overseas move under Korean law. But the country’s Justice Department reportedly had the powerful to grant exceptions.

The move comes in the wake of China’s zero-tolerance policy anti the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to lockdowns in some of the country’s most populated areas and diligence constraints across the industry.

Samsung didn’t immediately retort to a request for comment.