The Penghu County section head of the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau (MJIB) was detained yesterday evening on corruption charges, ministry officials said last night.
Chen Chi-yuan (陳麒元) has been accused of taking bribes from families of prisoners and detained suspects upon the reports of a whistle-blower.
MJIB officials formed a task force in collaboration with the Agency Against Corruption and Kaohsiung prosecutors to investigate the accusations.
Taipei Times file photo
The allegations date back to when Chen served as an MJIB investigator in Chiayi City.
Chen has been removed from his position while an investigation into the matter continues, MJIB Director Wang Chun-li (王俊力) said yesterday.
“The MJIB does not permit officer misconduct, and those who have engaged in unlawful actions will be punished without leniency,” Wang said.
“We demand strict discipline from our officers to comply with the law, as they serve as examples for society at large,” he said.
Kaohsiung prosecutors and corruption agency investigators have reportedly found evidence that Chen received up to NT$200,000 in bribes from 2019 to 2021 when he served in Chiayi City.
Chen allegedly took bribes in exchange for granting advantages to inmates and their lawyers, investigators said.
Favors Chen allegedly gave included temporary leave to meet with spouses and children, and to make telephone calls to deal with personal matters, investigators said.
Chen took advantage of his responsibility to ensure that inmates are properly detained and escorted to trial hearings.
Investigators said the alleged actions breached the Regulations Governing the Transfer of Prisoners (監獄受刑人移監作業辦法), while the bribery allegations could be prosecuted under the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例).
After overnight questioning by the Ciaotou District Prosecutors’ Office in Kaohsiung, Chen was detained and held incommunicado, while two other suspects surnamed Chen (陳) and Chiang (江) were remanded into custody, officials said.
Additional reporting by Chien Li-chung
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