Taipei District prosecutors charged former Non-Partisan Solidarity Union lawmaker Cheng Yu-cheng (鄭余鎮) and four others yesterday with cheating investors out of about NT$18 million (US$600,000).
Prosecutors allege that Cheng and his son Cheng Yu-hao (鄭余豪) established a company under the guise of a traditional local cooperative to solicit its members to transfer funds for investment.
Cheng Yu-cheng and Cheng Yu-hao, who served as the company’s president and board member respectively, allegedly persuaded members that the company would guarantee investors a certain level of return on their investment.
Such actions violated banking regulations because the company, which was not legally operating as a bank, did not have the authorization to accept deposits from customers or conduct banking services, prosecutors said.
The company took in about NT$18 million in private investments between 2005 and 2007, which was transferred to other companies under the Chengs’ names. The Chengs’ company went bankrupt from poor investment strategies and couldn’t pay investors their returns, leaving angry investors demanding their money and filing claims against the Chengs for fraud.
District prosecutors said they had concluded their investigation and indicted the two Chengs and four others for fraud and violation of the Banking Act (銀行法).
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off Taitung County at 1:09pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 53km northeast of Taitung County Hall at a depth of 12.5km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Taitung County and Hualien County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Nantou County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County, Kaohsiung and Tainan, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage following the quake.
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) is to begin his one-year alternative military service tomorrow amid ongoing legal issues, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. Wang, who last month was released on bail of NT$150,000 (US$4,561) as he faces charges of allegedly attempting to evade military service and forging documents, has been ordered to report to Taipei Railway Station at 9am tomorrow, the Alternative Military Service Training and Management Center said. The 33-year-old would join about 1,300 other conscripts in the 263rd cohort of general alternative service for training at the Chenggong Ling camp in Taichung, a center official told reporters. Wang would first