The Taiwan High Court yesterday upheld a guilty verdict for Hualien County Commissioner Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) on charges of insider trading and market manipulation in a second ruling, handing him an eight-month prison term and ordering repayment of NT$63 million (US$2.07 million) in illegal profits.
Fu was found guilty of contravening the Securities and Exchange Act (證券交易法) in 2003 by manipulating the stock price of Hold-Key Electric Wire and Cable Co (合機電線電纜), when he was a People First Party (PFP) legislator.
Legal proceedings began in August 2005, with the case winding through courts for 12 years. Yesterday’s decision can be appealed.
In the first ruling in 2008, the Taichung District Court found Fu guilty, imposing a 54-month prison term and a NT$50 million fine.
After an appeal, the Taichung branch of the High Court in 2010 found him guilty, handing down a 42-month prison term and a NT$40 million fine.
However, the Taipei branch of the High Court ordered a retrial, which reduced his prison time to nine months.
Following a subsequent appeal, the Supreme Court in 2014 returned the case to the High Court for a second retrial.
In yesterday’s ruling, the court said that as Fu’s insider trading and market manipulation took place in 2003, a penalty reduction was applied based on the 2007 Sentence Commutation Statutes (罪犯減刑條例), as well as the Fair and Speedy Criminal Trials Act (刑事妥速審判法).
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tuan Yi-kang (段宜康) questioned whether Fu received “preferential treatment from the justice system,” citing Fu’s involvement in the 1998 Typhone Food Co case.
“All defendants in the Typhone and Hold-Key cases have been serving their jail sentences, except for Fu, who was the main figure,” Tuan said. “The courts have handed him reduced terms, with more lenient sentences after each ruling, and he can still appeal the verdict.”
“Fu should be invited as a special guest at the ongoing judicial reform meetings,” Tuan added.
While Fu was elected as Hualien County commissioner as an independent, his political affiliation has leaned toward the pan-blue camp, as he began his political career with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) before joining the PFP in 2000.
Fu ran for the a legislative seat as elections in 2001 and 2005 as a PFP member, then registered to run in the Hualien County commissioner election as a KMT member in 2009, but was later expelled from the KMT.
In 2009, Fu controversially appointed his wife, now-KMT Legislator Hsu Chen-wei (徐榛蔚), as Hualien County deputy commissioner, which was predicated on the couple filing for divorce.
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
Tigerair Taiwan and China Airlines (CAL) today announced that several international flights were canceled or rescheduled due to Typhoon Ragasa. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) has maintained sea and land warnings for the typhoon. Its storm circle reached the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) on Taiwan's southern tip at 11am today. Tigerair Taiwan said it canceled Monday's IT551/IT552 Taoyuan-Da Nang, IT606/IT607 Taoyuan-Busan and IT602 Taoyuan-Seoul Incheon flights. Tomorrow, cancelations include IT603 Seoul Incheon-Taoyuan, as well as flights between Taoyuan and Sapporo, Osaka, Tokyo Narita, Okinawa, Fukuoka, Saga, Tokyo Haneda, Nagoya, Asahikawa and Jeju. On Wednesday, the IT321/IT322 Kaohsiung-Macau round-trip would also be canceled. CAL announced that today's
About nine Taiwanese are “disappeared,” detained, or otherwise deprived of freedom of movement in China each month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Between Jan. 1 last year and Aug. 31 this year, 188 Taiwanese travelers went missing, were detained and interrogated, or had their personal freedom restricted, with some questioned in airports or hotel lobbies, the council said. In a statement ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the council urged people visiting China for any reason to be highly vigilant and aware of the risks. Of the reported cases, 50 people were “disappeared” after entering China, 19 were detained and 119 had
RSS