Taipei City Councilor Ying Hsiao-wei (應曉薇) and Sheen Ching-jing (沈慶京), founder and chairman of the real estate conglomerate Core Pacific Group, were both released on bail this afternoon after being indicted yesterday with Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) on bribery and other charges.
Ying burst into tears and denied any wrongdoing and corruption allegations as she paid her bail of NT$15 million (US$460,000) and left the court in Taipei at around 4pm.
Sheen, who was released on bail of NT$40 million earlier today, left the court in a wheelchair and was sent to the National Taiwan University Hospital for a medical check-up.
Photo: CNA
His family brought the money to pay his bail this morning.
During the detention hearing yesterday, Sheen denied bribing Ko with NT$15 million, saying he “didn’t give him a single penny.”
He said he wanted to support a third party because he was sick of the two major parties — the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Sheen said he wanted to be released on bail because he is unwell.
The Taipei District Court rejected prosecutors' requests to detain the five defendants in the case, including Ko, Ying, Sheen, former Taipei Deputy Mayor Pong Cheng-sheng (彭振聲) and Lee Wen-tsung (李文宗), finance chief of Ko's 2024 presidential election campaign.
Pong and Lee were also released earlier today after paying their respective bails.
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
RSS