Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) today filed an appeal against the recent detention order issued by the Taipei District Court for him after three other defendants in the same case also appealed their detention.
The Taipei District Court said later today it had received his appeal.
The Taipei District Court on Thursday last week ruled that Ko, Taipei City Councilor Angela Ying (應曉薇), Core Pacific Group founder Sheen Ching-jing (沈慶京) and Lee Wen-tsung (李文宗), finance chief of Ko’s presidential campaign for last year’s election, were to be detained again after the High Court revoked a bail ruling from the lower court for the second time. They had been detained last year for months until being allowed out on bail on Dec. 28.
Photo: Taipei Times file photo
Ko reportedly said in his appeal request that Hsu Chih-yu (許芷瑜), who worked as a secretary at his mayoral office and reportedly left Taiwan last year, was not an accomplice but “at most” a witness in the political donation embezzlement case against him.
As the investigation on corruption charges has ended, Hsu’s not returning to the country should not affect the case, Ko said in his appeal request.
His appeal request also said investigators had summoned hundreds of people in four months, creating a “chilling effect” on the TPP and its donors, describing detention as a means of violating human rights.
Last month, Ko was indicted on charges of corruption, embezzlement, breach of trust and other alleged offenses, and is facing a combined 28-year, six-month prison term.
The TPP in a statement released today said Ko would not flee nor collude with other codefendants or witnesses, expressing support for Ko.
The TPP also called for supporters to join their rally in support of Ko tomorrow afternoon, which more than 10,000 people have already signed up for, TPP Secretary-General Vincent Chou (周榆修) told a press conference today.
Additional reporting by Li Wen-hsin
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday briefed her party’s Central Standing Committee regarding her scheduled visit to the US between Monday next week and June 16, saying that her purpose would be to persuade the US that the Republic of China (ROC) Constitution was a “one China” constitution that would foster stable and peaceful cross-strait relations. The ROC Constitution is the most important defense for all Taiwanese citizens, as it upholds our democracy and has contributed to our robust economy, which aligns with international and US interests, she said. “We would not be troublemakers and drag the US under,”
RSS