The Taiwan High Court yesterday ruled against Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) member and former Executive Yuan secretary-general Lin Yi-shih (林益世), handing him an additional five-month jail term in a malicious accusation lawsuit related to a 2012 corruption case.
Lin has been serving a two-year sentence after the Supreme Court in August last year upheld a district court conviction for receiving a NT$63 million (US$2.04 million at the current exchange rate) bribe. He was also ordered to pay a NT$15.8 million fine.
It has been a fall from grace for the 50-year-old, who was once seen as a rising star in the KMT. He was elected legislator four times.
Lin was an important member of then-KMT chairman Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) inner circle. In 2012, during Ma’s second term as president, Lin was named Executive Yuan secretary-general.
A judicial probe was initiated after Chinese-language Next Magazine in 2012 reported that Lin had allegedly asked for an NT$83 million bribe, of which he reportedly received NT$63 million, to help Kaohsiung-based Ti Yung Co secure a slag treatment contract from a subsidiary of China Steel Corp.
Lin at the time denied receiving the bribe and sued Next Magazine for libel, saying that the media outlet deliberately produced a false report about him.
However, evidence from the investigation, including audio recordings, showed that Lin had solicited and received the bribe.
In the first and second rulings, judges found him guilty for “holding properties of unknown origin” and related charges.
“Lin has been found guilty of malicious accusation, as despite knowing that he had received a bribe, he still went ahead and filed a libel suit against the media outlet,” the High Court said in a statement yesterday.
“Lin did not reflect on his wrongdoing and instead abused his government position and authority to convene a news conference at the Executive Yuan, at which he covered up facts related to the case,” it said.
“He attempted to use the justice system to obfuscate the truth from the public. Although he withdrew the case within a few days, he had already squandered judicial resources,” it added.
While they found Lin guilty of malicious accusation, the judges said that as he had admitted to wrongdoing in the trial, leniency was permitted in giving him a lighter five-month term instead of the three years and six months requested by prosecutors.
It was the second ruling in the case and can still be appealed.
Proceedings are still pending against Lin for charges under the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例) of money laundering and receiving bribes in breach of official duties, for which the High Court had ordered a retrial last year.
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS