Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lin Tai-hua (林岱樺) was released on NT$1 million (US$30,539) bail by the Kaohsiung District Prosecutors’ Office yesterday amid a corruption investigation.
Lin is restricted from leaving the country, taking boat trips and required to live at her residence or a designated location, the prosecutors office said.
Prosecutors on Thursday searched Lin’s legislative and local offices, as well as a temple in her constituency in Kaohsiung, amid two investigations, one over allegations that she filed fraudulent claims for assistants’ salaries.
Photo: Huang Chia-lin, Taipei Times
The searches were carried out simultaneously by prosecutors in Taipei and Kaohsiung.
Lin also faces a probe over an alleged abuse of power by engaging in activities that constitute a conflict of interest relating to her position as a public servant.
In 2020 Lin took a senior position on the board of the temple and allegedly exploited her image as a public figure to seek sponsorship from about 20 firms in Linyuan Industrial Park (林園工業區) in the city’s Siaogang District (小港).
She allegedly sought sponsors to help organize public events for the temple, which prosecutors said is a legal “gray area.”
Lin has denied all wrongdoing, saying that the accusations are from unsubstantiated and biased reports.
Prosecutors questioned an unidentified member of the temple.
The temple member was released on NT$1 million bail for suspected contraventions of the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例), while Lin’s younger sister was released on NT$300,000 bail in the same case early yesterday morning.
Prosecutors have also requested court approval to detain Lin’s younger brother and two members of her local office in connection with the temple case.
On leaving the prosecutors’ office at 7am yesterday, Lin told reporters that she is being targeted by “dark forces who chose to attack me at this time.”
Lin said that she has lawfully served Kaohsiung for the past 24 years, adding that she will fight to defend her innocence.
Lin, 52, served in the legislature from 2002 to 2008 before being elected again in 2011. She has been in office since then and has announced her intention to enter the DPP primaries for the 2026 Kaohsiung mayoral election.
Polls conducted by Chinese-language media, including TVBS News and Credere Media, have shown her in the lead among other aspirants from the DPP camp.
In a statement on Thursday, Lin’s constituency office denied any wrongdoing, saying that the lawmaker has always followed the law.
She will wait for the legal process to play out and prove her innocence, it added.
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
STAY COOL: The HPA recommended that people stay hydrated, use air-conditioning or fans while indoors, wear loose-fitting clothes and walk in the shade while outdoors Employers must implement measures such as installing cooling equipment, and providing drinking water and rest breaks for outdoor workers starting from Monday next week, the Taipei Department of Labor said on Sunday. Employers who fail to comply could face fines of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法), the department said. Businesses in Taipei employing fewer than 100 workers, as well as registered self-employed workers with labor insurance coverage, could receive on-site assessments and guidance from occupational safety consultants to help them apply for central government subsidies to implement or improve heat-protection measures, it said. Under the Ministry of
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