South Korea’s current president, Moon Jae-in, won an election to replace Ms. Park last May with promises to root out corrupt ties between politics and business that have bedeviled the country for decades.

In recent weeks, state prosecutors have questioned or arrested several of Mr. Lee’s former aides as well as relatives and businessmen as they built their case against the former president. Mr. Lee, a former Hyundai executive, has long been dogged by allegations of corruption, and his arrest had been expected since he was summoned and questioned by prosecutors last week.

Mr. Lee was accused of collecting more than $10 million in bribes from various sources, including Samsung, the county’s largest business conglomerate, when he was a presidential candidate and after he took office. Samsung has not commented on the case, although prosecutors have questioned one of its former vice chairmen and raided his home.

Prosecutors say that Mr. Lee hid his ownership of a lucrative auto-parts maker in the name of relatives and embezzled $32 million from the business. Mr. Lee was also accused of using his presidential power to help settle a legal case implicating the auto-parts company, getting a business conglomerate to pay $5.8 million in lawyer fees, they said. If convicted, Mr. Lee could be sentenced to life in prison.

Almost all of South Korea’s presidents have seen their reputations tarnished toward the end of their tenure or during their retirement because of corruption scandals involving them, their relatives or aides. Mr. Lee is the fourth former president to have been arrested on corruption charges since the 1990s.