Lee Kun-hee, the chairman of the South Korean Samsung Group, has denied corruption allegations.

He spoke while appearing amid tight security for questioning at a special prosecutor's office for the first time.

"I didn't do it. I never thought it (Samsung Group) was a criminal organization, and I think it is your (the media's) fault to define it that way."

This was the second time for the 66-year-old Lee to be interrogated since taking control of the Samsung Group at the death of his father, the conglomerate's founder, in 1987.

The first time was in 1995, when he was summoned along with a group of corporate leaders for questioning about the bribing of politicians a decade earlier.

South Korea's Yonhap news agency reports that Lee's appearance suggests that the high-profile probe is nearing its conclusion. At stake is whether Lee will be indicted.

Lee's wife was questioned for the first time on Wednesday over her alleged use of Samsung slush funds.

His son, brother-in-law and senior Samsung officials, including a vice chairman have also been subjected to hours of questioning.

The independent probe kicked off in January after a former lawyer for Samsung claimed that the group created 200 million US dollars in slush funds and routinely bribed public officials.

Samsung has denied the setting up of slush funds, but later acknowledged borrowed-name accounts.

The conglomerate accounts for nearly a quarter of South Korea's exports and gross national product.

Among its 59 affiliates are Samsung Electronics, the world's biggest memory chip maker, and Samsung Heavy Industries, the world's No. 2 shipbuilder.