Former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday came face to face with his son Chen Chih-chung (陳致中) at Taipei District Court, with the latter saying he transferred money to his Swiss bank accounts at the request of his mother.
“I listened to my mother on all [transactions],” Chen Chih-chung told the court.
Yesterday was the first time that the father and son faced each other in court. Chen Chih-chung appeared yesterday as a witness.
When he entered the courtroom, Chen Chih-chung and his father looked at each other and the former president nodded toward his son.
Presiding Judge Tsai Shou-hsun (蔡守訓) informed Chen Chih-chung of his right not to testify based on his relation to the former president. Chen Chih-chung replied that he understood his rights.
He was questioned about his family’s alleged money-laundering activities and gave detailed information on when and how overseas bank accounts were opened and fake companies established.
Chen Chih-chung said several times that his mother Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍) had instructed him on how much money to transfer and to which accounts.
When Tsai asked Chen Chih-chung whether the overseas bankers knew that he was the son Taiwan’s president, he replied that bankers had checked his and his wife’s passports to verify their identities, but had not asked about their family background.
Tsai also asked about Chen Chih-chung’s return to the US on Dec. 15, 2006 — the day that his mother fainted in court.
Chen Chih-chung said he had not returned to the US to handle his overseas bank accounts, but to honor an appointment with a professor.
“After I rushed to the hospital to see my mother and found that she was okay, I traveled abroad as I had originally planned,” he said.
Chen Shui-bian did not make eye contact with his son during the two hours of questioning. He briefly exchanged whispers with one of his court-appointed attorneys.
Although the former president was entitled to ask the witness questions, he remained silent.
Since his last detention hearing on May 7, Chen Shui-bian has declined to speak in his defense or answer questions in protest of what he calls an unfair judicial system.
The former president will appear in court again today. A detention hearing has also been scheduled for tomorrow.
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
CARGO LOSS: About 50 containers at the stern of the ‘Ever Lunar’ cargo ship went overboard, prompting the temporary closure of the port and disrupting operations Evergreen Marine Corp, Taiwan’s largest container shipper, yesterday said that all crew members aboard the Ever Lunar (長月) were safe after dozens of containers fell overboard off the coast of Peru the previous day. The incident occurred at 9:40am on Friday as the Ever Lunar was anchored and waiting to enter the Port of Callao when it suddenly experienced severe rolling, Evergreen said in a statement. The rolling, which caused the containers to fall, might have been caused by factors including a tsunami triggered by an earthquake in Russia, poor winter sea conditions in South America or a sudden influx of waves,
The Ministry of Culture yesterday officially launched the “We TAIWAN” cultural program on Osaka’s Nakanoshima sandbank, with the program’s mascot receiving overwhelming popularity. The cultural program, which runs from Aug. 2 to 20, was designed to partner with and capitalize on the 2025 World Expo that is being held in Osaka, Japan, from April 13 to Oct. 13, the ministry said. On the first day of the cultural program, its mascot, a green creature named “a-We,” proved to be extremely popular, as its merch was immediately in high demand. Long lines formed yesterday for the opening
The Taipei Summer Festival is to begin tomorrow at Dadaocheng Wharf (大稻埕), featuring four themed firework shows and five live music performances throughout the month, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said today. The festival in the city’s Datong District (大同) is to run until Aug. 30, holding firework displays on Wednesdays and the final Saturday of the event. The first show is scheduled for tomorrow, followed by Aug. 13, 20 and 30. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Disney Pixar's movie Toy Story, the festival has partnered with Walt Disney Co (Taiwan) to host a special themed area on
RSS