Ting Hsin International Group (頂新集團) executive Wei Ying-chun (魏應充) was indicted yesterday on charges of fraud, forgery and food-related regulatory violations for his role in an oil adulteration scandal that erupted last year. Wei, former chairman of Cheng I Food Co (正義股份), Ting Hsin Oil and Fat Industrial Co (頂新製油實業) and Wei Chuan Foods Corp (味全食品工業), faces up to 15 years in jail if convicted.
Also indicted was former Wei Chuan general manager Chang Chiao-hua (張教華) and former Ting Hsin Oil and Fat general manager Chang Mei-feng (常梅峰), as well as 10 other Wei Chuan employees.
Ting Hsin Oil and Fat, which made cooking oils marketed under the Wei Chuan brand, was found in November last year to have used adulterated oils obtained from Chang Chi Foodstuff Factory Co (大統長基) in its finished products.
Photo: Liao Yao-tung, Taipei Times
Chang Chi used cottonseed oil and other cheap oils in its more expensive grapeseed and olive oils, and, in some cases, used copper chlorophyllin to make the substitutes look more like olive oil.
According to the indictment, Ting Hsin Oil and Fat manufactured 65 olive oil and grapeseed oil products for Wei Chuan using oils supplied by Chang Chi between 2007 and last year, generating more than NT$792 million (US$26 million) in revenue.
Prosecutors allege that Wei and Chang were aware that they were buying adulterated oils from Chang Chi because they were informed by their quality-control department that Chang Chi’s oils were problematic, but insisted that the supplier’s products continue to be purchased.
Wei and Chang have denied the charges.
Wei has been detained by prosecutors since Oct. 17 over his involvement in a more recent edible oil scandal.
In the latest case, Ting Hsin Oil and Fat and Cheng I, another company previously led by Wei, was found to have used oils meant for animal feed in lard-based cooking oil products. The oils were also used by Wei Chuan in its food products.
Wei resigned from his posts as chairman of Wei Chuan, Ting Hsin Oil and Fat, and Cheng I — all subsidiaries of the Wei family-owned Ting Hsin International Group — on Oct. 9 following the more recent food scare.
NETWORK-MAPPING PROJECT: The database contains 170 detailed files of Taiwanese politicians and about 23 million records of household registration data in Taiwan China has developed a network-mapping project targeting political figures and parties in Taiwan to monitor public opinion during elections and to craft tailored influence campaigns aimed at dividing Taiwanese society, according to documents leaked by Chinese technology firm GoLaxy (中科天璣). The documents, collected by Taipei-based Doublethink Lab, showed a database was specifically created to gather detailed information on Taiwanese political figures, including their political affiliations, job histories, birthplaces, residences, education, religion and a brief biography about them. Several notable Taiwanese politicians are in the database, including President William Lai (賴清德), former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍),
RECOGNITION: Former Fijian prime minister Mahendra Chaudhry said that Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy serves as a stabilizing force in the Indo-Pacific region Taiwan can lead the unification of the Chinese people, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former Polish president Lech Walesa said in Taipei yesterday, adding that as the world order is changing, peaceful discussion would find good solutions, and that the use of force and coercion would always fail. Walesa made the remarks during his keynote address at a luncheon of the Yushan Forum in Taipei, titled “Indo-Pacific Partnership Prospects: Taiwan’s Values, Technology and Resilience,” organized by the Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Walesa said that he had been at the forefront of a big peaceful revolution and “if
North Korea tested nuclear-capable rocket launchers, state media reported yesterday, a day after Seoul detected the launch of about 10 ballistic missiles. The test comes after South Korean and US forces launched their springtime military drills, due to run until Thursday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday oversaw the testing of the multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS), the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The test involved 12 600mm-caliber ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers and two artillery companies, it said. Kim said the drill gave Pyongyang’s enemies, within the 420km striking range, a sense of “uneasiness” and “a deep understanding
North Korea yesterday fired about 10 ballistic missiles to the sea toward Japan, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, days after Pyongyang warned of “terrible consequences” over ongoing South Korea-US military drills. Pyongyang recently dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with Seoul, Washington’s security ally, describing its latest peace efforts as a “clumsy, deceptive farce.” Seoul’s military detected “around 10 ballistic missiles launched from the Sunan area in North Korea toward the East Sea [Sea of Japan] at around 1:20pm,” JCS said in a statement, referring to South Korea’s name for the body of water. The missiles
RSS