Legislative Yuan Secretary-General Lin Hsi-shan (林錫山) yesterday was detained for suspected corruption amid a probe into alleged irregularities in government procurements.
The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said Lin is suspected of having received more than NT$10 million (US$295,631) in kickbacks from Far Net Technologies Co (網遠科技), which won 32 computer and IT-related contracts at the Legislative Yuan amounting to NT$200 million.
Three other individuals were also detained as of last night, including Far Net Technologies owner Lin Pao-cheng (李保承) and sales manager Lin Ming-yu (林明玉), and Chen Liang-yin (陳亮吟), a section chief at the legislature’s Secretary-General’s Office.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
The four are being questioned over alleged violations of the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例) and the Government Procurement Act (政府採購法), as well as accepting bribes, receiving improper benefit in contravention of their official duty and leaking secrets, Deputy Chief Prosecutor Chang Chieh-chin (張介欽) said.
He said that all four are being held incommunicado due to the risk that they might collude on testimony, destroy evidence or flee from prosecution.
Chang said that more than 160 people, including police officers, prosecutors and investigators, were involved in the raids on 19 locations on Tuesday and that more than NT$6 million was found at Lin Hai-shan’s office and his residence, which prosecutors suspect came from kickbacks from Far Net.
Nine others taken in for questioning on Tuesday were released yesterday after posting bail, including Lin Hsi-shan’s wife, Liu Hsin-wei (劉馨蔚), who was freed on NT$2 million bail; Lin’s secretary Tsai Pin-chuan (蔡斌全), freed on NT$100,000 bail; and Chen Lu-sheng (陳露生), a former section chief at the Legislative Yuan’s Information Technology Office, released on NT$500,000 bail.
Prosecutors said Lin Hsi-shan, Far Net and other officials were placed under surveillance in December 2013 as part of an investigation into allegations of graft and bid-rigging dating back to 2012.
Chang said Lin Hsi-shan allegedly ordered the heads of the Information Technology Office and its staff to cooperate with Far Net on a number of open public tenders for computer and IT-related procurement projects, where the technical specifications, equipment requirements, minimum bid price, details of tender contract, allocated budget and bids by competing companies were leaked to the firm.
Prosecutors said that while under surveillance, Lin Hsi-shan allegedly received NT$7 million in a brown envelope from an intermediary sent by Far Net as the pair took a Taiwan High Speed Rail train journey in January last year.
The Republic of China (ROC) is celebrating its 114th Double Ten National Day today, featuring military parades and a variety of performances and speeches in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei. The Taiwan Taiko Association opened the celebrations with a 100-drummer performance, including young percussionists. As per tradition, an air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet flew over the Presidential Office as a part of the performance. The Honor Guards of the ROC and its marching band also heralded in a military parade. Students from Taichung's Shin Min High School then followed with a colorful performance using floral imagery to represent Taiwan's alternate name
COGNITIVE WARFARE: Chinese fishing boats transmitting fake identification signals are meant to test Taiwan’s responses to different kinds of perceived incursions, a report said Chinese vessels are transmitting fake signals in Taiwan’s waters as a form of cognitive warfare, testing Taipei’s responses to various types of incursions, a report by the Institute for the Study of War said on Friday. Several Chinese fishing vessels transmitted fake automatic identification system (AIS) signals in Taiwan’s waters last month, with one mimicking a Russian warship and another impersonating a Chinese law enforcement vessel, the report said. Citing data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence, the report said that throughout August and last month, the Chinese fishing boat Minshiyu 06718 (閩獅漁06718) sailed through the Taiwan Strait while intermittently transmitting its own AIS
The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) is to tighten rules for candidates running for public office, requiring them to declare that they do not hold a Chinese household registration or passport, and that they possess no other foreign citizenship. The requirement was set out in a draft amendment to the Enforcement Rules of the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法 ) released by the ministry on Thursday. Under the proposal, candidates would need to make the declaration when submitting their registration forms, which would be published in the official election bulletin. The move follows the removal of several elected officials who were
CHINESE INFILTRATION: Medical logistics is a lifeline during wartime and the reported CCP links of a major logistics company present a national security threat, an expert said The government would bolster its security check system to prevent China from infiltrating the nation’s medical cold chain, a national security official said yesterday. The official, who wished to stay anonymous, made the remarks after the Chinese-language magazine Mirror Media (鏡周刊) reported that Pharma Logistics (嘉里醫藥物流) is in charge of the medical logistics of about half of the nation’s major hospitals, including National Taiwan University Hospital and Taipei Veterans General Hospital. The company’s parent, Kerry TJ Logistics Co (嘉里大榮物流), is associated with the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the
RSS