In response to local news reports, the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) said yesterday it would investigate whether the warden of Kaohsiung Prison had an extramarital affair with a woman and had a child by her.
"The ministry strictly forbids its staff members, particularly high-ranking officials, having extramarital relations or abusing their positions," said Vice Minister of Justice Tang Jinn-chuan (湯金全) at a press conference yesterday.
"The ministry is looking into whether the head of Kaohsiung Prison, Wu Hsien-cang (吳賢藏), got involved in an affair and used an official car to gallivant around with his alleged mistress, as was reported in some local newspapers [yesterday]. If the reports are true, the ministry will remove him from his position," Tang said.
Huang Cheng-nan (黃徵男), director of the MOJ's Department of Corrections yesterday also told reporters that he had no knowledge of whether or not Wu had had an extramarital affair.
"As a prison official, his life should be clean," Huang said. "I don't think Wu would be fit for the position if the allegations against him are found to be true."
A Chinese language newspaper yesterday reported that Wu, 62, had an affair with a woman surnamed Lee, and that they have a seven-year-old love child. Wu denied having an affair and a seven-year-old son, and said that how and when he uses the official car is not the media's business.
Wu was absent from his office yesterday to avoid the barrage of media inquires, and calls to his office went unreturned.
Reports said Wu's mistress is a woman surnamed Lee, who is also the girlfriend of the late gangster Wu Shou-hsiung (吳守雄), who was killed in a gun-battle in the 1970s. Lee inherited Wu Shou-hsiung's assets after he was killed, and ran a transportation company in Kaohsiung.
The newspapers also reported that Lee has also invested in the entertainment and hotel business and is a well-known businesswoman in Kaohsiung.
The paper said that because of Lee's close relations with the criminal underworld, she often visited the prison so see friends. Lee was acquainted with Wu Hsien-cang when he was warden of Pingtung Prison.
The paper also said Wu began the affair with Lee in the late 90s and their son was born in 1998.
The paper also showed a picture of Wu driving in the official car with a boy -- apparently his son -- as he took the child to school at a time when he should have been at work.
Wu, who was promoted to head of Kaohsiung Prison in 2001, was criticized last year for ordering prisoners to come over and clean his house.
Adultery is a criminal offense in Taiwan, with a maximum penalty of up to one year in prison, but the offence rarely makes it to court.
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