Seventeen separate units yesterday swooped on as many different locations in Taipei City and County as part of a bribery investigation into the Taoyuan Airport Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) project.
Taiwan High Court prosecutors, Bureau of Investigation agents and internal affairs inspectors from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications cooperated in the raids and took away 13 people for questioning.
At press time yesterday, some of the engineers, officials and insurance salesmen were still being questioned.
The Special Investigation Section (SIS) of the Taiwan High Court Prosecutors’ Office was in charge of the operation.
SIS officials said that the case had been uncovered by the ministry’s Internal Affairs Department, which passed the case on to the SIS for further investigation.
Prosecutors said that the investigation concerned Taipei’s MRT Construction Bureau, Da Cin Construction Co and Fubon Insurance Co, with bribes allegedly totaling NT$13 million (US$427,700).
Da Cin won the bid to construct the section of the Taoyuan Airport MRT between Taipei Railway Station and Sanchong Station in April last year, SIS officials said.
The insurance budget for the construction of the section was NT$66 million.
Initial investigations showed that a Fubon insurance salesman had tried to broker a deal with Taipei MRT Construction Bureau’s engineers, who were then to persuade Da Cin to use Fubon as the insurance agent.
Fubon compiled an insurance quote of NT$52 million for Da Cin, but the salesman allegedly invoiced the bureau with a fake quote of NT$66 million. The difference between the two invoices was then distributed between those involved in the case, investigators said.
“Potential defendants in this case face charges of corruption and breach of trust,” said SIS prosecutor Chu Chao-liang (朱朝亮), who is heading the investigation.
“We have yet to decide whether to charge or detain anyone, as our inquiries are still ongoing,” Chu said.
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