Print

Mail

wiki links

MOFA asks for reference files on criminals' families

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has asked law enforcement authorities to furnish it with family files of key local criminals as part of its efforts to prevent a recurrence of the document certification blunder involving the nation's representative office in Great Britain, a senior official said yesterday.

Speaking at a news conference, Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (陳唐山) said he has asked police, prosecution and investigation authorities to provide lists of family members or next-of-kin of high-profile criminals to provide to overseas staff for their reference in handling passport applications or document certifications.

"The files will mainly be used as reference materials," Chen said, adding that the ministry will not put the files on its restricted list nor will it publicize the files without following legal procedures.

The MOFA made the request after two staffers at Taiwan's representative office in London were disciplined for issuing a passport and legal documents earlier this year to the wife of a high-profile fugitive arms dealer involved in the Lafayette frigate scandal.

Because of the negligence of the two staff members, the London representative office issued a new passport in March to Yeh Hsiu-chen (葉秀貞), the wife of Andrew Wang (汪傳浦), an arms broker who is wanted in connection with a kickback scandal surrounding Taiwan's purchase of six Lafayette-class missile frigates from France in 1991. Wang, who fled Taiwan in 1993 before police could question him, is reportedly living in hiding in Great Britain.

The London office also issued legal documents to Yeh on May 21 that allowed her to sell six properties in Taiwan. Yeh had already succeeded in disposing of two of the six properties before MOFA discovered the lapse.
This story has been viewed 2022 times.