One person has been detained, while six others have posted bail after being questioned by prosecutors on suspicion of purchasing personal information to use in Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) founder Terry Gou’s (郭台銘) signature drive to appear on next year’s presidential ballot.
The detainee, a woman surnamed Shen (沈), and the other six were questioned by the Taipei Shilin District Prosecutors’ Office after being linked to an investigation into reports that some people were being paid NT$400 for their signatures, while others had no idea why their names were among the signatures gathered.
The seven are suspected of buying customer lists from pawnshops in New Taipei City and using the information for the signature drive, prosecutors said.
Photo: CNA
The suspects face charges for breaching the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act (總統副總統選舉罷免法), prosecutors said, adding that people who offer bribes and other undue benefits for a person’s signature during such a drive can be sentenced to up to seven years in prison and fined up to NT$10 million (US$309,138).
Similar cases have been reported across Taiwan, National Police Agency Director-General Huang Ming-chao (黃明昭) said yesterday.
Police are investigating reports of bribery, people buying lists of personal information and other illegal activities that have allegedly taken place at Gou’s signature drive stations, Huang said.
Local media reported that a business tycoon surnamed Chen (陳), who owns several hot spring hotels and properties in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), was one of the six suspects who posted bail.
He reportedly paid NT$3 million, the highest bond posted, while the lowest paid was NT$15,000.
Gou’s campaign spokesman Huang Shih-hsiu (黃士修) denied any direct relationship with the suspects.
“Those local stations ... embroiled in bribery allegations are not associated with our official offices for Gou’s signature drive. We have nothing to do with those involved, and the people at our offices do not even know [them],” he said.
“When we started the signature drive, from day one, we stressed that there would be no financial benefit for people to sign on, as Guo and his aides have explicitly forbidden any illegal activities,” Huang Shih-hsiu said. “We shall cooperate with prosecutors for the investigation.”
Gou canceled all planned appearances yesterday, leading to speculation that it was was due to the investigation or because Chinese tax authorities had searched Hon Hai’s offices in China.
Gou’s campaign office yesterday morning announced that he would not attend a banquet at Jhongsing Temple (忠興宮) in New Taipei City’s Shulin District (樹林), which he had planned to attend with Taiwan People’s Party Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲).
Gou’s running mate, Tammy Lai (賴佩霞), took his place.
Huang Shih-hsiu said that Gou had just made changes to his personal itinerary and had not canceled because of either investigation.
“But Gou felt it was not quite proper, so he arranged for ... Lai to take his place ... [at] the Jhongsing Temple activities,” Huang said.
Additional reporting by Yang Kuo-wen
and Huang Ching-hsuan
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