Jailed former President Lee Myung-bak was admitted to a hospital on Monday for an unspecified chronic illness, the justice ministry said.

The 81-year-old was transferred to the Seoul National University Hospital in central Seoul from the Anyang Correctional Institution where he is serving a 17-year sentence for embezzlement and bribery convictions, according to the ministry.

Lee will undergo medical examinations for his chronic illness, and when he will be discharged from the hospital will not be disclosed for security reasons, ministry officials said.

It marks Lee's first hospitalization this year. He visited a hospital three times last year for chronic diseases, including diabetes.

Lee, who served as president from 2008-2013, has been serving the sentence since the Supreme Court finalized the 17-year jail term in October 2020.

Lee was excluded from the recent presidential pardons for the new year, under which jailed ex-President Park Geun-hye was set free. (Yonhap)