Authorities in Taichung detained seven police officers in a corruption probe on suspicion of receiving regular bribes from sex-trade businesses amid raids that saw 26 suspects detained and witnesses taken in for questioning in recent days.
As of yesterday, all seven officers were listed as suspects in the corruption probe by the Taichung District Prosecutors’ Office.
Four were released after questioning, while three higher-ranking officials had bail posted due to their being considered flight risks.
The three higher-ranking officers were police chief Chen Hung-mo (陳宏模), whose bail was set at NT$200,000; detective Chen Hsing-lung (陳興隆), NT$500,000 bail; and police sergeant Lai Hsin-chih (賴信志), NT$100,000 bail.
The raids, along with seizure of documents and evidence, were carried out on Monday and Tuesday in a joint operation between prosecutors, Ministry of Justice officials of the Agency Against Corruptio and National Police Agency officials with the Ethics Department.
Over the two-day operation, the law enforcement agencies raided 22 locations across Taichung, including premises where sex services were allegedly provided, taking in 26 people for questioning by prosecutors.
Taichung City Police Department spokesman Chen Jen-hui (陳仁輝) said the suspects allegedly received bribes from operators of sex-trade businesses in exchange for inside information and protection from police crackdowns.
A reporter surnamed Teng (鄧), who works for a Kaohsiung-based newspaper, acted as an intermediary between sex-trade proprietors and police, investigators said.
Teng allegedly collected bribe money at regular intervals to disburse among the police officers, investigators said.
Investigators said they have sufficient evidence of involvement by the seven police officers, as well as Teng, who used his media access to police agencies and precincts to link up the parties.
Teng allegedly handed over between NT$30,000 and NT$100,000 per month in bribes to the higher-ranking police officers in 2013 and 2014, investigators said.
They said evidence indicated that Teng was a major shareholder in a KTV lounge that had young women dressed in uniforms allegedly offer sexual services to male customers.
The police officers implicated in the case were suspected of tipping off the proprietors on impending inspections and conducting phony raids on the premises after which they would report that they had not found any evidence of illegal activities.
The probe was a continuation of a Taichung police corruption probe from last month in which a police officer surnamed Tsai (蔡) was accused of taking bribes to protect two “health spa” operations in the city that allegedly had female masseuses offering sexual services to customers.
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “(we) appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
TRUMP ERA: The change has sparked speculation on whether it was related to the new US president’s plan to dismiss more than 1,000 Joe Biden-era appointees The US government has declined to comment on a post that indicated the departure of Laura Rosenberger as chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Neither the US Department of State nor the AIT has responded to the Central News Agency’s questions on the matter, after Rosenberger was listed as a former chair on the AIT’s official Web site, with her tenure marked as 2023 to this year. US officials have said previously that they usually do not comment on personnel changes within the government. Rosenberger was appointed head of the AIT in 2023, during the administration of former US president Joe
MUST REMAIN FREE: A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would lead to a global conflict, and if the nation blows up, the world’s factories would fall in a week, a minister said Taiwan is like Prague in 1938 facing Adolf Hitler; only if Taiwan remains free and democratic would the world be safe, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The ministry on Saturday said Corriere della Sera is one of Italy’s oldest and most read newspapers, frequently covers European economic and political issues, and that Wu agreed to an interview with the paper’s senior political analyst Massimo Franco in Taipei on Jan. 3. The interview was published on Jan. 26 with the title “Taiwan like Prague in 1938 with Hitler,” the ministry