Prosecutors yesterday listed five current and former lawmakers, and four others, as suspects in a corruption probe, and applied to place them in judicial detention.
The move followed raids on the lawmakers’ offices at the Legislative Yuan and other locations on Friday in connection with long-running disputes and litigation over Far Eastern Group’s (遠東集團) takeover of Pacific Sogo Department Store (太平洋崇光百貨), involving a number of politicians, their aides and businesspeople.
After questioning, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office sought charges of corruption and taking bribes totaling NT$40 million (US$1.36 million) against Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators Chen Chao-ming (陳超明) and Sufin Siluko, along with Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Su Chen-ching (蘇震清) and independent Legislator Chao Cheng-yu (趙正宇).
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
Prosecutors have accused Su of taking the highest bribe of about NT$20 million, while NT$9.2 million was found in Chao’s office, believed to be bribe money.
New Power Party (NPP) Chairman Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明), a former legislator, also faces charges under the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例).
Former DPP legislator Mark Chen (陳唐山), who also faces pending corruption charges, was released in the morning after posting NT$500,000 bail.
Prosecutors applied with the bail court to detain the four current lawmakers and Hsu, as well as former Pacific Distribution Investment Co (太平洋流通) chairman Lee Heng-lung (李恆隆) and his three aides, citing the possibility that they could collude on their testimony, tamper with evidence or flee abroad.
Lee has since 2002 been embroiled in disputes and litigation against Far Eastern Group chairman Douglas Hsu (徐旭東) over the ownership of Pacific Sogo, with courts ruling in favor of both parties in separate verdicts.
When summoned by prosecutors for questioning on Friday night, Lee denied the bribery charges, while confirming that he had given NT$20 million to Su, saying that it was a loan, which Su had paid back.
The other lawmakers are suspected of receiving smaller bribes, the prosecutors said.
Prosecutors also questioned three men who are suspected of acting as “white gloves” in the case — Knowledge International Consultancy (是知管理顧問公司) general manager and political lobbyist Kuo Ke-ming (郭克銘), Tonlin Department Store (統領百貨) general manager Weng Hua-li (翁華利), and Singaporean businessman George Guek (郭明忠), founder of Singapore-based BreadTalk Group.
Investigators reportedly have evidence and witness testimony that Kuo, Weng and Guek had personal ties with Lee, and joined forces to wrestle back control of Pacific Sogo from Douglas Hsu and his Far Eastern Group.
Lee allegedly sought a business partnership with Guek’s firm to boost capital and became a major shareholder in Lee’s Pacific Distribution Investment.
He also allegedly urged BreadTalk Group to launch an international business lawsuit over accusations that Douglas Hsu’s subsidiary firm in 2002 forged documents to falsify capitalization figures to gain control of Pacific Sogo.
Following questioning, Weng was released on NT$2 million bail and the lawmakers’ aides were released on NT$100,000 bail each, while prosecutors were still questioning Kuo as of press time last night.
In an investigation into Chao allegedly pressuring a Ministry of the Interior department to rezone a plot of land to benefit development inside Yangmingshan National Park, funeral service business owners Chung Ke-hsin (鍾克信) and Chen Ming-han (陳明瀚) were released on bail of NT$1 million and NT$300,000 respectively.
The implicated legislators were members of the legislature’s Finance Committee or allegedly lobbied for Lee’s efforts to regain control of Pacific Sogo, and questioned the legality of Douglas Hsu taking over the company.
MAKING WAVES: China’s maritime militia could become a nontraditional threat in war, clogging up shipping lanes to prevent US or Japanese intervention, a report said About 1,900 Chinese ships flying flags of convenience and fishing vessels that participated in China’s military exercises around Taiwan last month and in January last year have been listed for monitoring, Coast Guard Administration (CGA) Deputy Director-General Hsieh Ching-chin (謝慶欽) said yesterday. Following amendments to the Commercial Port Act (商港法) and the Law of Ships (船舶法) last month, the CGA can designate possible berthing areas or deny ports of call for vessels suspected of loitering around areas where undersea cables can be accessed, Oceans Affairs Council Minister Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said. The list of suspected ships, originally 300, had risen to about
DAREDEVIL: Honnold said it had always been a dream of his to climb Taipei 101, while a Netflix producer said the skyscraper was ‘a real icon of this country’ US climber Alex Honnold yesterday took on Taiwan’s tallest building, becoming the first person to scale Taipei 101 without a rope, harness or safety net. Hundreds of spectators gathered at the base of the 101-story skyscraper to watch Honnold, 40, embark on his daredevil feat, which was also broadcast live on Netflix. Dressed in a red T-shirt and yellow custom-made climbing shoes, Honnold swiftly moved up the southeast face of the glass and steel building. At one point, he stepped onto a platform midway up to wave down at fans and onlookers who were taking photos. People watching from inside
Japan’s strategic alliance with the US would collapse if Tokyo were to turn away from a conflict in Taiwan, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said yesterday, but distanced herself from previous comments that suggested a possible military response in such an event. Takaichi expressed her latest views on a nationally broadcast TV program late on Monday, where an opposition party leader criticized her for igniting tensions with China with the earlier remarks. Ties between Japan and China have sunk to the worst level in years after Takaichi said in November that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could bring about a Japanese
The WHO ignored early COVID-19 warnings from Taiwan, US Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services Jim O’Neill said on Friday, as part of justification for Washington withdrawing from the global health body. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday said that the US was pulling out of the UN agency, as it failed to fulfill its responsibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The WHO “ignored early COVID warnings from Taiwan in 2019 by pretending Taiwan did not exist, O’Neill wrote on X on Friday, Taiwan time. “It ignored rigorous science and promoted lockdowns.” The US will “continue international coordination on infectious
RSS