Legislator and Hsinchu mayor-elect Ann Kao (高虹安) and her boyfriend, Lee Chung-ting (李忠庭), were yesterday questioned by investigators, while a search was conducted at her legislative offices in Taipei and other locations, as part of a judicial probe into alleged wage fraud, illegal payroll deductions and embezzlement of public funds.
Five former and current staffers of the Taipei People’s Party (TPP) legislator were also questioned by Investigation Bureau officials in New Taipei City.
The investigation began last month after a whistle-blower, reportedly a former staffer, filed a complaint at the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office against Kao, then running for the TPP in the Hsinchu mayoral election.
Photo: CNA
Staffers had to pay part of their wages into a “common fund,” which Kao used for personal expenses, while some of the money was also transferred to the TPP’s coffers, the whistle-blower said.
Investigators at about 9:30am searched Kao’s offices in the legislature’s Chunghsing Building and subpoenaed the office’s wage payment records.
Chen Huan-yu (陳奐宇), who heads Kao’s office, was also questioned, as well as former deputy office head Chen Yu-kai (陳昱愷), former office publicity and media liaison head Wang Yu-wen (王郁文), and two former assistants, Huang Hui-wen (黃惠玟) and Wu Ta-wei (吳達偉).
Kao and Lee were served summonses in Hsinchu City, from where they were taken to the Investigation Bureau branch office in New Taipei City.
Kao is to be sworn in as Hsinchu mayor on Dec. 25. She has been urged to step down as a legislator-at-large since she began her campaign, especially after her mayoral run began to be mired in controversy.
Political commentators have said she might seek to serve in the legislature until she assumes office as mayor, which would grant her continuous immunity.
It is unusual for politicians holding offices that grant them immunity to be faced with probes that involve searches at their premises.
Kao, Lee and her staffers might face charges under the Anti-Corruption Act (貪汙治罪條例), prosecutors have said, adding that she might also face charges related to pressuring people to give false testimony and interfering with a judicial investigation.
Kao allegedly asked staffers to tell investigators that the deductions were voluntary.
Legislative Yuan Secretary-General Lin Jih-jia (林志嘉) and Legislative Speaker You Si-kun (游錫?) confirmed that the search had been conducted after investigators filed a written request.
“We are a nation that upholds rule of law,” You said. “Even the judiciary must comply with the required procedures.”
The prosecutors provided “sufficient reason” for the search, he added.
As of press time last night, a decision on whether Kao and Lee would be detained was pending.
Mayors-elect are legally required to be sworn in within three months after the planned date for them to assume office.
If that is not possible, for example because they are in detention, a by-election would be held to fill their position.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
RSS