Former vice premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) was released on bail of NT$28 million (US$875,575) in Taoyuan today after being indicted on corruption charges the day before.
Cheng had been held incommunicado since he was detained by authorities in Taoyuan based on a court order on July 11.
Photo: Chou Min-hung, Taipei Times
As part of the conditions of his release, Cheng is required to remain at his residence and is not allowed to leave the country for eight months, prosecutors said.
He is also forbidden from making contact with witnesses or other defendants in the case.
In addition to Cheng, four other suspects involved in the case who had been detained were also released on bail today.
Hou Shui-wen (侯水文), former executive general manager of Formosa Plastics Group, was released on NT$2.05 million bail, while Liao Chun-sung (廖俊松), former head of an industrial zone planning committee in New Taipei City's Linkou District (林口), was released on NT$1.1 million bail.
Two of Liao's sons, Liao Chia-hsing (廖家興) and Liao Li-ting (廖力廷), were also released on bail of NT$600,000 and NT$250,000 respectively.
At a news conference yesterday, the Taoyuan District Prosecutors' Office recommended a 12-year jail sentence for Cheng for allegedly receiving a NT$5 million bribe while serving as Taoyuan mayor to broker an industrial development project in the city's Hwa Ya Technology Park.
Following the indictments, the case was transferred to the Taoyuan District Court which held a hearing at 9:30pm the same day.
At 1:30am the court ruled that Cheng be granted bail of NT$28 million, the highest bail amount given to any political figure in recent years.
A lawyer representing Cheng brought the bail money at about 2:41am and the visibly-tired former vice premier left the court without speaking to reporters at about 5am.
Cheng is also under investigation in a separate case, after N$6.78 million in cash was discovered at his Taipei residence during a search by prosecutors on July 29.
Cheng, 57, served as vice premier from Jan. 31 last year to May 20. Before that, he was the first major of the newly established Taoyuan special municipality from 2014 to 2022.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
Taiwan successfully defended its women’s 540 kilogram title and won its first-ever men’s 640 kg title at the 2026 World Indoor Tug of War Championships in Taipei yesterday. In the women’s event, Taiwan’s eight-person squad reached the final following a round-robin preliminary round and semifinals featuring teams from Ukraine, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, the Basque Country and South Korea. In the finals, they swept the Basque team 2-0, giving the team composed mainly of National Taiwan Normal University students and graduates its second championship in a row, and its fourth in five years. Team captain
When Paraguayan opposition lawmaker Leidy Galeano returned from an all-expenses-paid tour of six Chinese cities late last year, she was convinced Paraguay risked missing out on major economic gains by sticking with longtime ally Taipei over Beijing — a message that participants on the trip heard repeatedly from Chinese officials. “Everything I saw there, I wanted for my country,” said Galeano, a member of the newly-formed Yo Creo party whose senior figures have spoken favorably about China. This trip and others like it — which people familiar with the visits said were at the invitation of the Chinese consulate in Sao Paulo
RSS