Authorities at the Port of Kaohsiung on Tuesday conducted raids on five warships at Tsoying Naval Base, confiscating documents and other items, and taking five naval officers in for questioning as part of a judicial probe into a major corruption scandal in the Republic of China (ROC) Navy.
Naval personnel are alleged to have colluded with contractors to siphon off diesel from ship fuel tanks to sell on the black market.
A total of 21 individuals were taken in following the raids, which were supported by military police units.
After questioning, four contractors and a petty officer, surnamed Chen (陳), were detained.
The rest were released on bail of between NT$50,000 (US$1,600) and NT$100,000.
Other navy officials allegedly caught up in the scandal and being questioned included a chief petty officer surnamed Chiu (邱), a junior grade lieutenant surnamed Tseng (曾) and a first class petty officer surnamed Lai (賴), who are all responsible for fuel supply of their respective ships.
A Kaohsiung District Prosecutors’ Office spokeman said investigators had discovered that Chen was allegedly engaging in a recent illegal transaction that saw 9,600 liters of diesel, with an estimated value of NT$2 million, siphoned from a naval ship by a contractor surnamed Kuo (郭).
The ship was said to be the Cheng Kung-class No. 1105 Ji Kuang Frigate, a modified US Oliver Hazard Perry-class warship, on which Chen was serving as petty officer responsible for the fuel supply.
A probe into corruption in the navy began last year after the Kaohsiung District Prosecutors’ Office received a tip-off from an informer.
The prosecutors coordinated with the military investigation unit and the police to monitor the suspected illegal activities involving five warships.
According to prosecutors, the businesspeople involved are contractors who secured bids for cleaning warship fuel tanks to remove sediments and chemical precipitates — a process that is conducted on a regular basis throughout the year.
ENTERTAINERS IN CHINA: Taiwanese generally back the government being firm on infiltration and ‘united front’ work,’ the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association said Most people support the government probing Taiwanese entertainers for allegedly “amplifying” the Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda, a survey conducted by the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association showed on Friday. Public support stood at 56.4 percent for action by the Mainland Affairs Council and the Ministry of Culture to enhance scrutiny on Taiwanese performers and artists who have developed careers in China while allegedly adhering to the narrative of Beijing’s propaganda that denigrates or harms Taiwanese sovereignty, the poll showed. Thirty-three percent did not support the action, it showed. The poll showed that 51.5 percent of respondents supported the government’s investigation into Taiwanese who have
South Korean K-pop girl group Blackpink are to make Kaohsiung the first stop on their Asia tour when they perform at Kaohsiung National Stadium on Oct. 18 and 19, the event organizer said yesterday. The upcoming performances will also make Blackpink the first girl group ever to perform twice at the stadium. It will be the group’s third visit to Taiwan to stage a concert. The last time Blackpink held a concert in the city was in March 2023. Their first concert in Taiwan was on March 3, 2019, at NTSU Arena (Linkou Arena). The group’s 2022-2023 “Born Pink” tour set a
A Philippine official has denied allegations of mistreatment of crew members during Philippine authorities’ boarding of a Taiwanese fishing vessel on Monday. Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) spokesman Nazario Briguera on Friday said that BFAR law enforcement officers “observed the proper boarding protocols” when they boarded the Taiwanese vessel Sheng Yu Feng (昇漁豐號) and towed it to Basco Port in the Philippines. Briguera’s comments came a day after the Taiwanese captain of the Sheng Yu Feng, Chen Tsung-tun (陳宗頓), held a news conference in Pingtung County and accused the Philippine authorities of mistreatment during the boarding of
88.2 PERCENT INCREASE: The variants driving the current outbreak are not causing more severe symptoms, but are ‘more contagious’ than previous variants, an expert said Number of COVID-19 cases in the nation is surging, with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) describing the ongoing wave of infections as “rapid and intense,” and projecting that the outbreak would continue through the end of July. A total of 19,097 outpatient and emergency visits related to COVID-19 were reported from May 11 to Saturday last week, an 88.2 percent increase from the previous week’s 10,149 visits, CDC data showed. The nearly 90 percent surge in case numbers also marks the sixth consecutive weekly increase, although the total remains below the 23,778 recorded during the same period last year,
RSS