Legal experts said yesterday the outlook was bleak for former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and his co-defendants in the former first family's money laundering and corruption trial.
A judge with experience presiding over corruption cases said the chances of Chen receiving a heavy sentence, if convicted, was quite high given the large amount of money he and his wife, Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍), allegedly pocketed.
Other public servants accused of corruption, if convicted, could also receive heavy sentences because precedent rulings showed that even those convicted of embezzling small amounts of money received sentences of at least eight years, the judge said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
This would include the two former presidential aides, former Presidential Office director Lin Teh-hsun (林德訓) and former deputy secretary-general Ma Yung-cheng (馬永成), who have been accused of inappropriately reimbursing the former first family for personal expenses taken out of the president's “state affairs fund.”
Former Hsinchu Science Park chief James Lee (李界木), who is also a co-defendant in Chen's trial and has been charged with taking kickbacks from a government land deal in Longtan (龍潭), Taoyuan County, is also on the list of former civil service employees who may receive heavy sentences.
As for the former president's detention, Chen Shui-bian's court-appointed attorney, Tseng Te-rong (曾德榮), said if the detention hearing is held by the district court, it is doubtful that Chen would be released.
Tsai Shou-hsun (蔡守訓), the district court judge presiding over Chen's trial, has repeatedly ruled to keep Chen detained.
Tsai replaced Chou Chan-chun (周占春) as judge in December. Chou had twice ruled against detaining Chen. The switching of judges was controversial, with some claiming it was politically motivated and violated judicial procedures.
The former president has been incarcerated at the Taipei Detention Center since Dec. 30 on charges of embezzling public funds, money laundering, accepting bribes on a land deal, influence peddling and forgery.
The district court will announce its verdict on Friday.
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
BE CAREFUL: The virus rarely causes severe illness or death, but newborns, older people and those with medical conditions are at risk of more severe illness As more than 7,000 cases of chikungunya fever have been reported in China’s Guangdong Province this year, including 2,892 new cases last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday said it is monitoring the situation and considering raising the travel notice level, which might be announced today. The CDC issued a level 1 travel notice, or “watch,” for Guangdong Province on July 22, citing an outbreak in Foshan, a manufacturing hub in the south of the province, that was reported early last month. Between July 27 and Saturday, the province reported 2,892 new cases of chikungunya, reaching a total of 7,716
RSS