Prosecutor Eric Chen (
On Friday, prosecutors indicted first lady Wu Shu-jen (
Eric Chen detailed the evidence he had collected when explaining the indictment in a press conference on Friday, emphasizing the reasons why he could not accept the "secret diplomatic mission" explanation offered by the president, Wu and other suspects.
Eric Chen said prosecutors discovered that a total of 29 receipts used to claim reimbursements from the "state affairs fund" were actually received by Wu when she bought jewelry, clothing, shoes, sunglasses and other items worth a total of NT$1,490,000 (US$45,288).
He added that he investigated a number of shops where Wu had bought goods, and that he had statements from the stores' clerks.
The prosecutor said clerks had told him that Wu had tried on the clothing before she bought it, and that he had proved that the clothing bought matched Wu's size.
"I also learned that a diamond ring that Wu bought matches her finger size," Eric Chen told the press on Friday.
The prosecutor said he interviewed the president for the second time on Oct. 27, and asked him to explain how the receipts had been submitted for reimbursement from the "state affairs fund." The president admitted that while some of the receipts were from gifts he had bought for his wife, others were from gifts for foreign guests and friends' weddings.
Eric Chen, however, said "Chen [Shui-bian] and Wu failed to identify who received the gifts and make it possible for prosecutors to interview them."
Additionally, Eric Chen said that, Wu's friend Lee Bi-chun (
But Eric Chen said he found that the times when the receipts had been issued and turned in to the Presidential Office were times that "Person A" was abroad, so it was impossible for "Person A" to have submitted the receipts.
Meanwhile, regarding complaints from president and Wu that Eric Chen did not give them enough of a chance to explain the matter, the prosecutor on Friday said he had interviewed the first lady on Aug. 20 and decided to interview her again in the middle of October.
However, he said that Wu, through the Presidential Office, had declined to attend another prosecutors' interview citing health reasons.
Eric Chen also attempted, and failed to interview Wu when he completed an interview of the president at the Presidential Residence on Oct. 27.
The prosecutor said that on Nov. 1 he sent a letter requesting to question Wu, but his request was denied by the Presidential Office.
Eric Chen added that he decided not to wait any longer, as the evidence he had gathered had proved prosecutors' suspicions, and he decided to bring the case to court.
ALIGNED THINKING: Taiwan and Japan have a mutual interest in trade, culture and engineering, and can work together for stability, Cho Jung-tai said Taiwan and Japan are two like-minded countries willing to work together to form a “safety barrier” in the Indo-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday said at the opening ceremony of the 35th Taiwan-Japan Modern Engineering and Technology Symposium in Taipei. Taiwan and Japan are close geographically and closer emotionally, he added. Citing the overflowing of a barrier lake in the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) in September, Cho said the submersible water level sensors given by Japan during the disaster helped Taiwan monitor the lake’s water levels more accurately. Japan also provided a lot of vaccines early in the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic,
Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) on Monday announced light shows and themed traffic lights to welcome fans of South Korean pop group Twice to the port city. The group is to play Kaohsiung on Saturday as part of its “This Is For” world tour. It would be the group’s first performance in Taiwan since its debut 10 years ago. The all-female group consists of five South Koreans, three Japanese and Tainan’s Chou Tzu-yu (周子瑜), the first Taiwan-born and raised member of a South Korean girl group. To promote the group’s arrival, the city has been holding a series of events, including a pop-up
TEMPORAL/SPIRITUAL: Beijing’s claim that the next Buddhist leader must come from China is a heavy-handed political maneuver that will fall flat-faced, experts said China’s requirement that the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation to be born in China and approved by Beijing has drawn criticism, with experts at a forum in Taipei yesterday saying that if Beijing were to put forth its own Dalai Lama, the person would not be recognized by the Tibetan Buddhist community. The experts made a remarks at the two-day forum hosted by the Tibet Religious Foundation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama titled: “The Snow Land Forum: Finding Common Ground on Tibet.” China says it has the right to determine the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation, as it claims sovereignty over Tibet since ancient times,
Temperatures in some parts of Taiwan are expected to fall sharply to lows of 15°C later this week as seasonal northeasterly winds strengthen, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. It is to be the strongest cold wave to affect northern Taiwan this autumn, while Chiayi County in the southwest and some parts of central Taiwan are likely to also see lower temperatures due to radiational cooling, which occurs under conditions of clear skies, light winds and dry weather, the CWA said. Across Taiwan, temperatures are to fall gradually this week, dropping to 15°C to 16°C in the early hours of Wednesday
RSS