Seoul, Jun 21 (IANS): A South Korean district prosecutors office will take a decision next week on whether to grant jailed former President Lee Myung-bak's request to suspend his 17-year prison term for corruption, sources said on Tuesday.

The Suwon District Prosecutors Office will hold a deliberation committee meeting on June 28 to determine whether to release Lee from the Anyang Correctional Institution, Yonhap News Agency.

The 81-year-old had filed the petition earlier this month, citing health issues.

Lee, who was President from 2008 to 2013, has been serving the sentence since the Supreme Court finalised the 17-year prison term in October 2020.

He has been in and out of the hospital during his imprisonment for chronic diseases, including diabetes.

The former leader was first imprisoned in March 2018 during the prosecution investigation, before being released on bail in March 2019.

He was thenre-incarcerated in February 2020 following a higher court's ruling but was released again six days later, after he challenged the cancellation and the court decided to suspend the execution of the prison sentence until the highest court's ruling on the appeal was made.

Lee was excluded from the presidential pardons by former President Moon Jae-in, under which jailed former President Park Geun-hye was set free.