Fugitive Yunlin County commissioner Chang Jung-wei (
At press time, Chang was being questioned by Yunlin Prosecutor Tsai Chi-wen (蔡啟文) at the bureau's central headquarters. He had been arrested earlier in the day when a car in which he was traveling was stopped in Yunlin County's Linnei Township.
Chang was being sought by Yunlin prosecutors as part of an investigation into the Linnei Township incinerator construction scandal.
A court had already sentenced Chang to 12 months in jail for bribery during the 1994 election for the Yunlin County Council speakership. That case is under appeal at the Supreme Court.
During a break in questioning, Chang told reporters that he was innocent and asked his constituents to continue supporting him.? He said he had nothing to do with the case.
Chang's sister, Chang Li-shan (張麗善) who is running for a seat on an independent ticket in today's legislative elections, yesterday told reporters that her brother had told her he would "clarify his situation" on Dec. 20. She was in tears when she spoke with the media, saying she felt helpless over her brother's arrest.
She said her brother was innocent and that ballots cast for her would be proof of his innocence in the matter and ensure that justice was served.
She asked that the investigation into her brother be fair and unbiased.
The investigation into the incinerator scandal began in June, when prosecutors received a tip-off from an anonymous informant who claimed that Yunlin government officials -- including Chang -- had accepted a substantial bribe during the tendering process for construction of the incinerator.
In July, Linnei Township Mayor Chen Ho-shan (陳河山) admitted that he had accepted a total of NT$18 million in bribes from contractors attempting to ensure that the construction contract was granted to them.
Chang went into hiding, and law enforcement officers believed that he had fled to China. His family, however, insisted that Chang had remained in the country, which was seemingly confirmed yesterday when Chang was arrested.
An arrest warrant was issued after Chang failed to answer prosecutors' summons on three occasions.
Chang's whereabouts were unknown from Aug. 13, when prosecutors and bureau special agents first raided his office and residence while investigating the incinerator scandal.
Prosecutors said Chang is in a difficult position in this case because witness testimony is decisively against him.
During a press conference late last night, police said they had arrested Chang after pulling over a car in which he and a few friends were traveling.? He was arrested at 5pm and brought to police headquarters for questioning at around 7pm.
NO LIVERPOOL TRIP: Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting, who won a gold medal in the boxing at the Paris Olympics, was embroiled in controversy about her gender at that event Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting (林郁婷) will not attend this year’s World Boxing Championships in Liverpool, England, due to a lack of response regarding her sex tests from the organizer, World Boxing. The national boxing association on Monday said that it had submitted all required tests to World Boxing, but had not received a response as of Monday, the departure day for the championships. It said the decision for Lin to skip the championships was made to protect its athletes, ensuring they would not travel to the UK without a guarantee of participation. Lin, who won a gold medal in the women’s 57kg boxing
RESPONSE: The transit sends a message that China’s alignment with other countries would not deter the West from defending freedom of navigation, an academic said Canadian frigate the Ville de Quebec and Australian guided-missile destroyer the Brisbane transited the Taiwan Strait yesterday morning, the first time the two nations have conducted a joint freedom of navigation operation. The Canadian and Australian militaries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Ministry of National Defense declined to confirm the passage, saying only that Taiwan’s armed forces had deployed surveillance and reconnaissance assets, along with warships and combat aircraft, to safeguard security across the Strait. The two vessels were observed transiting northward along the eastern side of the Taiwan Strait’s median line, with Japan being their most likely destination,
‘NOT ALONE’: A Taiwan Strait war would disrupt global trade routes, and could spark a worldwide crisis, so a powerful US presence is needed as a deterrence, a US senator said US Senator Deb Fischer on Thursday urged her colleagues in the US Congress to deepen Washington’s cooperation with Taiwan and other Indo-Pacific partners to contain the global security threat from China. Fischer and other lawmakers recently returned from an official trip to the Indo-Pacific region, where they toured US military bases in Hawaii and Guam, and visited leaders, including President William Lai (賴清德). The trip underscored the reality that the world is undergoing turmoil, and maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific region is crucial to the security interests of the US and its partners, she said. Her visit to Taiwan demonstrated ways the
The US has revoked Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) authorization to freely ship essential gear to its main Chinese chipmaking base, potentially curtailing its production capabilities at that older-generation facility. American officials recently informed TSMC of their decision to end the Taiwanese chipmaker’s so-called validated end user (VEU) status for its Nanjing site. The action mirrors steps the US took to revoke VEU designations for China facilities owned by Samsung Electronics Co and SK Hynix Inc. The waivers are set to expire in about four months. “TSMC has received notification from the US Government that our VEU authorization for TSMC Nanjing
RSS