The High Court late on Saturday night rejected appeals against the detention of former Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and three other suspects, who are being held as part of an investigation into alleged corruption in connection with the Core Pacific City redevelopment project.
The High Court ruled that Ko, mayor of Taipei from 2014 to 2022, real estate tycoon Sheen Ching-jing (沈慶京), Taipei City Councilor Ying Hsiao-wei (應曉薇) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Ko’s former mayoral office head Lee Wen-tsung (李文宗) should be held in incommunicado detention, it said in a statement issued yesterday.
The Taipei District Court granted the prosecutors’ motion to detain Ying on Aug. 29 last year and Sheen and Wu the following day. It ordered that they be held incommunicado for bribes Sheen allegedly paid to Ying in relation to the redevelopment project on the site of the now-demolished Core Pacific City shopping center.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
The suspected bribery involves more than NT$47.4 million (US$1.44 million) transferred from the bank account of the Core Pacific Group to the city councilor.
Sheen said the money was for charity causes Ying was involved in, but the prosecutors believe that the timing of the payments correlated with the redevelopment project’s increase in floor area ratio from 560 percent to 840 percent, which was approved by the city government in 2021.
In its latest ruling, the High Court cited sufficient evidence to determine that the corruption charges, among others, were felonies that carry a prison term of five years or more under the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例), a condition for detention.
There is also the possibility of them fleeing or colluding with each other to tamper with evidence if they are released on bail or under other restrictions, the court said.
Ko and the three other suspects filed appeals against their detention earlier this month, saying there was no credible reason to suggest they were likely to flee, destroy evidence or collude with accomplices and witnesses, and there was no need or reason to detain them, the court statement said.
However, after reviewing the files and evidence of this case, the High Court determined the claims of Ko and others were not credible and therefore rejected their appeals on Saturday night. The High Court ruling is final.
The High Court also approved a Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office request to impound Ying’s property in Taipei, valued at NT$57.27 million.
Ko, 65, was the TPP’s presidential candidate in last year’s election. He appealed to the court after a third bail hearing earlier this month and requested that he be granted bail.
He was indicted on Dec. 26 last year on bribery and other corruption charges in connection with real-estate dealings during his second term as Taipei mayor, which began in 2018. He was also charged with embezzling political donations given to the TPP during last year’s presidential election.
After being held incommunicado for nearly four months during the investigation into the allegations, Ko was released on bail of NT$30 million on Dec. 27 last year, as ordered by the Taipei District Court, and again on bail of NT$70 million on Dec. 30 after the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office appealed the decision.
After prosecutors appealed a second time, the court reversed its earlier decision and ordered him detained on Jan. 2.
The TPP yesterday criticized the latest ruling, saying that the High Court knew the evidence presented by prosecutors was weak and that it was helping the prosecution.
Additional reporting by Chang Wen-chuan
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
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
Reports of Taiwanese going missing, being detained or interrogated, or having their personal liberties restricted in China increased about fourfold annually last year, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Last year, 221 Taiwanese who traveled to China were reported missing, were detained and interrogated, or otherwise had their personal freedom restricted, up from 55 the previous year, the council said. Reopening group tours to China would be risky, as it would leave travelers with no way to seek help through official channels after Beijing shut down dialogue between the associations tasked with handling cross-strait tourism, the MAC said. Taipei’s Taiwan Strait Tourism
SHIFT: Taiwan is evolving from a transit stop into a tourist destination, with more international travelers willing to spend on tours, dining and cultural activities Taiwan rose three places in the World Tourism Barometer to 36th globally in 2024, with international tourism revenue of US$10.028 billion, the Tourism Administration said on Monday. The UN Tourism Organization publication said that its focus has switched from whether a country has returned to pre-COVID-19 levels of tourism to the amount spent by a tourist during an overseas trip. The nation last year welcomed 8.57 million international tourists, about 9 percent more than in 2024, with most tourists coming from Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong and Macau, all of which accounted for at least 1 million tourists each. During the first
RSS