A retired air force captain and six active air force and navy officers were indicted in Kaohsiung on Thursday on charges of spying for China.
All seven were charged with violating the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法) by the High Prosecutors’ Office in Kaohsiung.
Prosecutors and investigators launched a probe in January, detaining a retired air force captain and three active military officers on Jan. 4, while three other active lieutenant commanders were released on bail ranging from NT$100,000 to NT$200,000.
Photo: Pao Chien-hsin, Taipei Times
The detainees included a retired captain surnamed Liu (劉), who is at the center of the investigation, an active commander surnamed Sun (孫), and two lieutenant commanders surnamed Liu (劉) and Kung (龔) respectively.
Following their indictment on Thursday, the court ordered the four individuals to be held incommunicado starting on Friday.
The three others involved in the case remain on bail.
The retired Liu began conducting business in China after leaving the air force in 2013, the investigation found.
He was recruited by China to serve as a spy and, using his military connections, recruit active military officers in the navy and air force to join the spying activities, prosecutors said.
The retired Liu recruited at least six officers into his spy ring and received “rewards” of NT$200,000 to NT$700,000 for each individual he brought into the fold, they said.
The money was channeled through a shell company, and he received bonuses of NT$30,000 to NT$100,000 if his benefactors were supplied with Taiwanese military information, they said.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or