Former Tainan City Council speaker Kuo Hsin-liang (郭信良) was detained and held incommunicado on Friday on suspicion of extortion and receiving bribes of more than NT$10 million (US$319,667) from an engineering consultancy.
The Tainan District Court approved the request by prosecutors to detain the 63-year-old Kuo, who is a city councilor in Tainan, and Kao Chin-chien (高進見), a borough warden, to prevent collusion, the court said.
Kuo was among more than 10 people who were brought in by prosecutors for questioning on Thursday over their roles in a land zoning project.
Photo: Tung Chen-kuo, Taipei Times
Prosecutors said that they conducted dawn raids on Kuo’s offices at the city council and constituencies, the city’s Department of Land Administration, and the residencies of other suspects.
Five other suspects were released on bail of between NT$50,000 and NT$300,000, while others were allowed to leave without bail after questioning.
Kuo was a member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) when he served as deputy speaker from 2010 to 2018, and acting speaker briefly for two months in 2016, before he left the party in 2018 for a successful run at the speakership as an independent.
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported the first case of a new COVID-19 subvariant — BA.3.2 — in a 10-year-old Singaporean girl who had a fever upon arrival in Taiwan and tested positive for the disease. The girl left Taiwan on March 20 and the case did not have a direct impact on the local community, it said. The WHO added the BA.3.2 strain to its list of Variants Under Monitoring in December last year, but this was the first imported case of the COVID-19 variant in Taiwan, CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said. The girl arrived in Taiwan on
ANNUAL EVENT: Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in Daan Park, with an event zone operating from 10am to 6pm This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park today and tomorrow, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a themed food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm, it said. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs, it added. People could also try the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area, the department said. Three PokeStops are
This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park this weekend, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a theme food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances. Pokemon Go Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as photo attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs. Pokemon trainers could also experience the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area. Three PokeStops are to be set up in the park. Trainers are invited to take
RSS