Prosecutors yesterday rejected accusations of political persecution by former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator Yen Kuan-heng (顏寬恒) following his indictment.
“We completed the investigation before bringing charges against the defendants, based on evidence and facts. The matter is now in the hands of the court,” Taichung District Prosecutors’ Office Deputy Chief Prosecutor Chan Chang-hui (詹常輝) said.
“We will not respond to the remarks Yen made during a news conference earlier in the day,” Chan said.
Photo: CNA
Yen and his wife, Chen Li-ling (陳麗淩), were on Wednesday indicted on charges of corruption and forgery.
They have been accused of fabricating documents and receipts to pocket the wages of an office assistant when Yen served as KMT legislator from 2016 to 2020.
They have also been accused of fraudulent transactions and illegal acquisition of public land to build a luxury mansion in Taichung, valued at about NT$90 million (US$2.93 million).
Yen told the news conference in Taichung that he was facing “trumped-up charges” and was targeted by the prosecutors for political persecution.
He also denied the accusations leveled against him and his wife.
“The indictment is clearly politically motivated,” Yen said.
“I will not tolerate prosecutors attacking me personally. I must defend my innocence. I will fight for the opportunity to serve my constituents,” he said.
KMT spokesperson Lu Ching-wei (呂謦煒) supported Yen.
“We ask the justice system to uphold fairness and conduct the trial with transparency,” he said.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lin Ching-yi (林靜儀), who defeated Yen in last year’s by-election to represent Taichung’s second electoral district, said Yen should respect the results of the investigation, and not claim political persecution when evidence points to contraventions of the law.
AGING: While Japan has 22 submarines, Taiwan only operates four, two of which were commissioned by the US in 1945 and 1946, and transferred to Taiwan in 1973 Taiwan would need at least 12 submarines to reach modern fleet capabilities, CSBC Corp, Taiwan chairman Chen Cheng-hung (陳政宏) said in an interview broadcast on Friday, citing a US assessment. CSBC is testing the nation’s first indigenous defense submarine, the Hai Kun (海鯤, Narwhal), which is scheduled to be delivered to the navy next month or in July. The Hai Kun has completed torpedo-firing tests and is scheduled to undergo overnight sea trials, Chen said on an SET TV military affairs program. Taiwan would require at least 12 submarines to establish a modern submarine force after assessing the nation’s operational environment and defense
A white king snake that frightened passengers and caused a stir on a Taipei MRT train on Friday evening has been claimed by its owner, who would be fined, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. A person on Threads posted that he thought he was lucky to find an empty row of seats on Friday after boarding a train on the Bannan (Blue) Line, only to spot a white snake with black stripes after sitting down. Startled, he jumped up, he wrote, describing the encounter as “terrifying.” “Taipei’s rat control plan: Release snakes on the metro,” one person wrote in reply, referring
The coast guard today said that it had disrupted "illegal" operations by a Chinese research ship in waters close to the nation and driven it away, part of what Taipei sees a provocative pattern of China's stepped up maritime activities. The coast guard said that it on Thursday last week detected the Chinese ship Tongji (同濟號), which was commissioned only last year, 29 nautical miles (54km) southeast of the southern tip of Taiwan, although just outside restricted waters. The ship was observed lowering ropes into the water, suspected to be the deployment of scientific instruments for "illegal" survey operations, and the coast
Yangmingshan National Park authorities yesterday urged visitors to respect public spaces and obey the law after a couple was caught on a camera livestream having sex at the park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) earlier in the day. The Shilin Police Precinct in Taipei said it has identified a suspect and his vehicle registration number, and would summon him for questioning. The case would be handled in accordance with public indecency charges, it added. The couple entered the park at about 11pm on Thursday and began fooling around by 1am yesterday, the police said, adding that the two were unaware of the park’s all-day live
RSS