Sat, Dec 07, 2024 page1

• Former soldiers charged with spying

  NATIONAL SECURITY: Three of them served in the 211th Military Police Battalion and the fourth served in the Ministry of National Defense’s information command

  • By Lery Hiciano / Staff writer, with CNA
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  Taipei prosecutors yesterday indicted four former military personnel, including three who were responsible for security at the Presidential Office Building, on charges of selling state secrets to China.

  The three men served in the 211th Military Police Battalion — surnamed Lai (賴), Lee (黎) and Lin (林) — while the fourth, surnamed Chen (陳), served in the Ministry of National Defense’s Information, Communications and Electronic Force Command.

  All four have been detained, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said.

  

  Barriers are set up outside the Presidential Office Building in Taipei on March 30, 2014.

  Photo: CNA

  Lai served from August 2015 to November last year, Chen from December 2017 to July last year, Lee from 2018 to February, and Lin from 2021 to August, it said.

  From the end of 2021 to the beginning of 2022, Lai and Chen were allegedly brought into the scheme by a man surnamed Huang (黃), who is currently wanted, on behalf of China’s intelligence agents, prosecutors said.

  Starting in April 2022, Chen used his cellphone to take photographs of classified documents before passing them on to Lai and Chen, or Chinese agents, prosecutors said.

  From March or April last year to August this year, Chen, operating under an alias, started to seek out fellow soldiers who would be willing spy on behalf of China for rewards, prosecutors said.

  He forwarded the information of one active-duty soldier to Lai, although the soldier did not agree to join the scheme, prosecutors said.

  Lai and Chen were compensated by the level of sensitivity of information provided to the agents, and how many fellow soldiers they contacted as part of the scheme, prosecutors said.

  In October 2022, Lai was transferred to a new unit, and he referred Lee to his old unit, who continued the scheme by using his cellphone to take photographs of official documents and pass them on to agents, prosecutors said.

  After Lee was discharged from the military, he introduced Lin to the unit, who continued the espionage activities from January of this year onward, they said.

  In total, prosecutors estimated that Lai received NT$460,000 (US$14,194), Chen NT$450,000, Lee NT$664,100 and Lin NT$265,900 as rewards.

  After being tipped off by officers and soldiers, the defense ministry referred the case to the Keelung military police and the Ministry of Justice, which began to review personnel involved and trace financial transactions before transferring the case to the prosecutors’ office.

  In August, prosecutors searched and questioned Lai and the others, all of whom confessed, prosecutors said.

  The office concluded its investigation and charged the four with accepting bribes in contravention of the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例) and the National Security Act (國家安全法) in exchange for collecting state secrets on behalf of China.

  Presidential Office spokesman Lii Wen (李問) said that China continues to undermine Taiwan’s hard-fought democratic freedoms, and that any treasonous behavior by soldiers or officers must be fully prosecuted.

  Officials would strengthen efforts to protect state secrets and closely supervise units, he said, adding that to defend the country, the public and the army must be united.

  The defense ministry confirmed that it began an investigation after receiving reports about the soldiers’ alleged misconduct, but it cannot comment on ongoing legal cases.

  The armed forces would continue to closely monitor for espionage, strengthen efforts to enhance national security education and cooperate with other agencies to safeguard national security, it added.
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