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.
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