Former Nantou County commissioner Lee Chao-ching (李朝卿) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) was found guilty of corruption and sentenced to 30 years in prison by the Nantou District Court yesterday.
The court also found Lee’s brother-in-law, Chien Jui-chi (簡瑞祺), guilty of distributing illicit funds and sentenced him to 22 years in prison.
The ruling, which concluded a more than two-year-long judicial probe, saw Lee and Chien convicted of graft, receiving kickbacks and bid-rigging from 2008 to 2012, when Lee was head of the Nantou County Government.
Photo: Chen Feng-li, Taipei Times
There were also guilty verdicts for 13 other county government officials and business associates involved in the corruption scandal, who were given terms ranging from three months to six years, some with suspended sentences, for benefiting from illicit funds.
Yesterday’s court decision was the first ruling and can be appealed.
Lee’s lawyer said he was surprised by the court’s verdict and heavy sentencing, adding that he would file an appeal.
According to the ruling, Lee was found to have received at least NT$31.73 million (US$967,083) from contractors and business companies in bribes and kickbacks related to 111 projects, involving road construction, bridge repair and county government-initiated public infrastructure construction and upgrade works throughout Nantou County.
The ruling said that the county’s mountainous regions suffered major damage to roads and bridges after landslides and flooding during storms and periods of heavy rain, adding that Lee, as head of the county government, did not apply for repair and construction projects, but instead siphoned off money and made illegal gains from such projects.
The court said it handed out heavy punishments because Lee did not admit his involvement, instructing other defendants to make denials and fabricate information.
At the time of indictment in 2013, prosecutors said Lee was suspected of receiving kickbacks of between 10 percent and 15 percent from almost every county government project since assuming office in 2008.
The judicial probe found other county government officials colluded with Lee and Chien by forging documents and initiating bid-rigging practices for designated contractors to secure tender bids, while also receiving bribes and kickbacks.
Among the officials were Lee’s former secretary Chang Chih-yi (張志誼) and two former Nantou County Department of Public Works heads, Tseng Jen-lung (曾仁隆) and Huang Jung-te (黃榮德).
Tseng was given a six-year sentence, while Chang and Huang received suspended sentences, as both admitted their roles in the corruption scandal and co-operated with prosecutors during the judicial probe.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
BACK TO WORK? Prosecutors said they are considering filing an appeal, while the Hsinchu City Government said it has applied for Ann Kao’s reinstatement as mayor The High Court yesterday found suspended Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) not guilty of embezzling assistant fees, reducing her sentence to six months in prison commutable to a fine from seven years and four months. The verdict acquitted Kao of the corruption charge, but found her guilty of causing a public official to commit document forgery. The High Prosecutors’ Office said it is reviewing the ruling and considering whether to file an appeal. The Taipei District Court in July last year sentenced Kao to seven years and four months in prison, along with a four-year deprivation of civil rights, for contravening the Anti-Corruption
NO CONFIDENCE MOTION? The premier said that being toppled by the legislature for defending the Constitution would be a democratic badge of honor for him Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday announced that the Cabinet would not countersign the amendments to the local revenue-sharing law passed by the Legislative Yuan last month. Cho said the decision not to countersign the amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) was made in accordance with the Constitution. “The decision aims to safeguard our Constitution,” he said. The Constitution stipulates the president shall, in accordance with law, promulgate laws and issue mandates with the countersignature of the head of the Executive Yuan, or with the countersignatures of both the head of the Executive Yuan and ministers or
RSS