The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office yesterday said that it is dropping a case against arms broker Andrew Wang (汪傳浦) for his alleged role in the death of a naval officer in 1993.
Wang — the key figure in the corruption scandal surrounding the 1991 deal for Lafayette-class frigates from France — fled Taiwan with his family in December 1993, shortly after the body of navy captain Yin Ching-feng (尹清楓) was discovered floating off the coastline near Suao (蘇澳), Yilan County, on Dec. 10 of that year.
Yin is believed to have been murdered because he was ready to blow the whistle on the kickback scheme.
Wang worked as an agent for the Lafayette manufacturer, then-known as Thomson CSF. He lived in the US for several years, before moving to the UK. He remained on the nation’s most-wanted list until his death in England in January at the age of 86 was confirmed.
“The office received Wang’s death certificate from related agencies in London recently and has therefore decided to drop the case against him in Yin’s case,” the office said.
The Supreme Prosecutors’ Office Special Investigation Division said late last month that it would continue to pursue Wang’s illicit gains from the scandal.
The funds are in Swiss bank accounts in the names of Wang’s wife and four children, and have been frozen by Swiss authorities.
The division said the status of Wang’s wife and children, who are also wanted for their involvement in money laundering, is unchanged.
Wang was also indicted on corruption charges in 2006, along with former navy captain Kuo Li-heng (郭力恆), over their involvement in a slush fund linked to the frigate deal.
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