The Taipei District Court yesterday ruled that Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) be detained and held incommunicado over alleged corruption dating to his time as mayor of Taipei.
The ruling reversed a decision by the court on Monday morning that Ko be released without bail.
After prosecutors on Wednesday appealed the Monday decision, the High Court said that Ko had potentially been “actively involved” in the alleged corruption and ordered the district court to hold a second detention hearing.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Ko did not speak to reporters upon his arrival at the district court at about 9:10am yesterday to attend a procedural meeting between the prosecution and defense scheduled for 9:30am.
After the meeting concluded at about 10am, the detention hearing began at 2pm.
Police said they had mobilized 400 personnel to maintain order around the district court on Boai Road in Taipei’s Zhongzheng District (中正) and would remove protesters if they held signs or shouted slogans.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
The court released its verdict ordering Ko’s detention at about 5:20pm.
Ko can appeal the ruling.
“It is regrettable that the court made such a decision, but we will continue to support Chairman Ko and defend his innocence in accordance with the law,” TPP Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) wrote on Facebook shortly after the verdict.
A statement posted later by the TPP on Facebook said that Ko had been “unfairly treated” by the district court and asked why Monday’s decision had been reversed.
“The TPP will resolutely support Chairman Ko in defending his innocence,” the party said.
The TPP leader was seen at 5:50pm entering a vehicle in handcuffs before being driven to the Taipei Detention Center in New Taipei City’s Tucheng District (土城).
In accordance with the Code of Criminal Procedure (刑事訴訟法), Ko can be lawfully detained for up to four months while prosecutors continue their investigation.
Prosecutors allege that Ko was involved in dealings that contravened the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例) during his second term as Taipei mayor from 2018 to 2022.
Core Pacific Group (威京集團) chairman Sheen Ching-jing (沈慶京) allegedly gave Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei City Councilor Angela Ying (應曉薇) more than NT$47.4 million (US$1.48 million) as part of his company’s efforts to illegally lobby the Taipei City Government to increase the floor area ratio of Core Pacific City, a redevelopment project in Songshan District (松山), to boost the property’s value.
Prosecutors alleged that Ying was a go-between for Sheen and top city officials, including then-Taipei deputy mayor Pong Cheng-sheng (彭振聲).
They also suspect that Ko was involved in the alleged illegal activity.
Ko has denied this.
The district court yesterday ruled that Ko “clearly knew” that raising the floor area ratio of the Core Pacific City property was illegal, yet he “insisted” that it happen.
It said that Ko’s case formally meets the requirements for the crime of knowingly “seeking unlawful gains for oneself or for others” as stipulated in Article 6 of the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例).
Due to the severity of the alleged crime and the scale of gains, it was necessary and in the public interest to detain Ko and hold him incommunicado, as the risk of him colluding with others or destroying evidence is sufficiently strong, it said.
Ko joins Ying, Sheen, Pong and Ying’s assistant Wu Shun-min (吳順民) who are being held incommunicado as suspects in the ongoing investigation.
According to the Anti-Corruption Act, taking bribes that undermine official duties can be punishable by a prison sentence of no less than 10 years, while “directly or indirectly seeking unlawful gains for oneself or others” can result in a prison sentence of no less than five years.
Ko and the TPP are also linked to a separate criminal investigation relating to campaign finance reporting discrepancies dating to the campaign for January’s presidential election.
OPTIMISTIC: The DGBAS sharply upgraded its GDP growth estimate from 3.54 percent to 7.71 percent after the Taiwan-US trade agreement signing and given AI optimism The US imported more from Taiwan than China for the first time in decades, as US President Donald Trump’s tariffs reshape trade flows while a global boom in artificial intelligence (AI) fuels demand for tech products. US purchases of goods from China plunged almost 44 percent in December last year from 2024 to US$21.1 billion, US Department of Commerce data showed on Thursday. By contrast, shipments from Taiwan more than doubled during the same period to US$24.7 billion. The soaring Taiwanese shipments to the US reflect the huge expansion in supplies of chips and servers for AI companies, which has completely changed
The Central Election Commission has amended election and recall regulations to require elected office candidates to provide proof that they have no Chinese citizenship, a Cabinet report said. The commission on Oct. 29 last year revised the Measures for the Permission of Family-based Residence, Long-term Residence and Settlement of People from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area (大陸地區人民在台灣地區依親居留長期居留或定居許可辦法), the Executive Yuan said in a report it submitted to the legislature for review. The revision requires Chinese citizens applying for permanent residency to submit notarial documents showing that they have lost their Chinese household record and have renounced — or have never
US and Chinese fighter jets briefly faced off above waters near the Korean Peninsula this week, Yonhap News agency reported, marking a rare confrontation in that area between the two superpowers. About 10 US fighter jets on Wednesday departed an airbase in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, for drills above international waters off South Korea’s western coast, the news outlet cited unidentified military sources as saying. While the US planes did not enter China’s air defense identification zone, Beijing scrambled planes as they neared that region, the report said. “The Chinese People’s Liberation Army organized naval and air forces to monitor and effectively respond
Taiwan has secured another breakthrough in fruit exports, with jujubes, dragon fruit and lychees approved for shipment to the EU, the Ministry of Agriculture said yesterday. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency on Thursday received formal notification of the approval from the EU, the ministry said, adding that the decision was expected to expand Taiwanese fruit producers’ access to high-end European markets. Taiwan exported 126 tonnes of lychees last year, valued at US$1.48 million, with Japan accounting for 102 tonnes. Other export destinations included New Zealand, Hong Kong, the US and Australia, ministry data showed. Jujube exports totaled 103 tonnes, valued at
RSS