The Taipei District Court yesterday sentenced Chinese intelligence officer Zhen Xiaojiang (鎮小江), who recruited Taiwanese military personnel as part of a spy ring, to four years in jail for violations of the National Security Act (國家安全法).
Five other people, all Taiwanese military officers, who were also found guilty in yesterday’s ruling, were given more lenient sentences.
The court gave retired army major-general Hsu Nai-chuan (許乃權) a three-year jail term, while retired air force colonel Chou Chih-li (周自立) received a suspended 18-month sentence with five years of probation; retired army officer Yang Jung-hua (楊榮華) a suspended five-month term with two years of probation; retired air force pilot Sung Chia-lu (宋嘉祿) a suspended 12-month sentence with four years of probation; and retired air force pilot Ma Po-le (馬伯樂) a suspended four-month term with two years of probation.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
According to the ruling, the sentences for all except Hsu and Chou can be commuted to fines.
Yang, Sung and Ma will not be required to serve time in prison due to their suspended sentences.
The trial was held in chambers and was closed to the media due to the sensitive nature of military and state security information and materials being discussed in the case.
The judge said Zhen succeeded in recruiting a significant number of Taiwanese military personnel to work for China, and inflicted major damage to national security and the operations of the armed forces.
Zhen, who retired from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) at the rank of captain, was last year apprehended by authorities for operating what was said to be the largest Chinese spy ring in Taiwan in years.
Reports said Zhen joined the Chinese Ministry of State Security after retiring from the PLA, obtained Hong Kong residency in 2005 and then traveled to Taiwan numerous times on business and tourist visas.
During his visits, Zhen recruited Taiwanese military personnel by offering financial rewards and other inducements, asking them for classified information on the nation’s radar stations, key defense installations and intelligence on US-sourced advanced aircraft and other weapons systems.
A judicial investigation found that Zhen’s spy ring gathered and passed on to China classified information on the Dassault Mirage 2000 fighter jet, the ultra-high-frequency radar installation on Leshan (樂山) in Hsinchu County and other weapons platforms.
CHAOS: Iranians took to the streets playing celebratory music after reports of Khamenei’s death on Saturday, while mourners also gathered in Tehran yesterday Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a major attack on Iran launched by Israel and the US, throwing the future of the Islamic republic into doubt and raising the risk of regional instability. Iranian state television and the state-run IRNA news agency announced the 86-year-old’s death early yesterday. US President Donald Trump said it gave Iranians their “greatest chance” to “take back” their country. The announcements came after a joint US and Israeli aerial bombardment that targeted Iranian military and governmental sites. Trump said the “heavy and pinpoint bombing” would continue through the week or as long
TRUST: The KMT said it respected the US’ timing and considerations, and hoped it would continue to honor its commitments to helping Taiwan bolster its defenses and deterrence US President Donald Trump is delaying a multibillion-dollar arms sale to Taiwan to ensure his visit to Beijing is successful, a New York Times report said. The weapons sales package has stalled in the US Department of State, the report said, citing US officials it did not identify. The White House has told agencies not to push forward ahead of Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), it said. The two last month held a phone call to discuss trade and geopolitical flashpoints ahead of the summit. Xi raised the Taiwan issue and urged the US to handle arms sales to
An Emirates flight from Dubai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday afternoon, the first service of the airline since the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Saturday. Flight EK366 took off from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at 3:51am yesterday and landed at 4:02pm before taxiing to the airport’s D6 gate at Terminal 2 at 4:08pm, data from the airport and FlightAware, a global flight tracking site, showed. Of the 501 passengers on the flight, 275 were Taiwanese, including 96 group tour travelers, the data showed. Tourism Administration Deputy Director-General Huang He-ting (黃荷婷) greeted Taiwanese passengers at the airport and
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday said that it had confirmed on Saturday night with its liquefied natural gas (LNG) and crude oil suppliers that shipments are proceeding as scheduled and that domestic supplies remain unaffected. The CPC yesterday announced the gasoline and diesel prices will rise by NT$0.2 and NT$0.4 per liter, respectively, starting Monday, citing Middle East tensions and blizzards in the eastern United States. CPC also iterated it has been reducing the proportion of crude oil imports from the Middle East and diversifying its supply sources in the past few years in response to geopolitical risks, expanding
RSS