A Taipei district court yesterday handed down a 27-month prison sentence to Liu Cheng-chih (劉政池), the brother of a former county commissioner, for violating the Soil and Water Conservation Act (水土保持法) in an illegal appropriation of public land case involving property on Yangmingshan (陽明山).
Yesterday’s verdict by the Shilin District Court in Taipei was widely viewed as a light sentence, because Liu was found not guilty on the more serious illegal occupation of state-owned land charge, which carries a harsher punishment.
Public outcry followed the announcement of the sentence, as the public officials implicated in the case — mostly from the Yangmingshan National Park Administration (YNPA) — received harsher sentences, with former YNPA director Tsai Pai-lu (蔡佰祿) receiving a six-year jail term for his involvement.
Photo: CNA
Liu was accused of illegally appropriating about 1,465 ping (4,843m2) of public land to build an opulent estate, known as “77 Mansion” (七七行館), inside Yangmingshan National Park, through bribes for YNPA officials to expedite the process and obtaining approval permits through the use of forged documents.
During construction of the property, Liu also carried out unauthorized activities, which included cutting down trees and excavating land to put in metal cargo containers for an expanded underground housing complex. These activities are normally not allowed and highly regulated inside Yangmingshan National Park, under the strict scrutiny of the YNPA.
During the investigation, it was ascertained that construction permits were obtained for the original mansion and the planned expansions only after Liu’s brother, former Miaoli County commissioner Liu Cheng-hung (劉政鴻), bribed Tsai and other officials with lavish banquets and other inducements.
In yesterday’s ruling, former YNPA section chief Lee Chao-sheng (李朝盛) and his subordinate Hsieh Wen-hua (謝文華), who handled the permit applications, were both given 31-month sentences, while construction contractor Yeh Hsien-chung (葉憲忠) received a seven-month jail term.
Prosecutors said the Liu family illegally occupied public land in a national park for nearly two decades thanks to collusion with YNPA officials, who accepted various bribes and inducements.
According to the indictment, Liu Cheng-chih originally bought the land adjacent to Yangmingshan’s Sulfur Valley (硫磺谷) in 1998, and rented public land from the YNPA starting in 1999 for NT$22,860 per month, before beginning construction in 2004.
Due to Liu Cheng-chih’s construction and improvements over the past decade, “77 Mansion” reportedly increased in value by a factor of more than 250 to reach NT$770 million (US$24.53 million) from an original value of about NT$3 million.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS