In the ongoing Core Pacific City corruption case, lawyers representing former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) today questioned whether former Taipei deputy mayor Pong Cheng-sheng (彭振聲) was coerced into making a guilty plea.
The lawyers found issue with Pong’s recorded confession, which took place last year on Sept. 4, believing that the full interrogation was not recorded due to a two-hour gap in the video, after which Pong pled guilty.
Ko’s lawyers questioned what occurred during these two hours and whether prosecutors forced Pong to accuse Ko of having committed a crime.
Photo: Lo Pei-de, Taipei Times
Political pundit Grace Woo (吳靜怡) said that Pong’s confession has been deemed legitimate by both prosecutors and investigators, so there is no need to continuously fabricate claims that it was an illegal interrogation.
The two-hour gap in the recordings is because it was dinnertime at the prison Pong was held at, and he had to eat and take his medication.
Early last month, Pong’s wife died after falling from a building in Kaohsiung, leading to him reportedly recanting his confession and asserting his innocence.
Separately, Taipei prosecutors have indicted former Democratic Progressive Party legislator Chen Ou-po (陳歐珀) and 16 others for accepting bribes and other improper benefits while in office, contravening the Money Laundering Control Act (洗錢防制法).
Chen would later be transferred to the Taipei District Court where a judge is to determine whether he would be required to stay detained.
Chen, who served in the legislature from 2012 to 2020, is suspected of accepting improper benefits or bribes from United Logistics International Co, a Taiwanese firm based in Keelung, during his second term of office from 2016 to 2020.
Chen is also suspected of using his position as lawmaker to propose legislation that would benefit the company and protect its operations, as well as inflating his aide fees.
On June 3, Chen was questioned and detained after investigators carried out raids at 14 locations linked to Chen and others connected to the allegations.
The inspection equipment and data transmission system for new robotic dogs that Taipei is planning to use for sidewalk patrols were developed by a Taiwanese company, the city’s New Construction Office said today, dismissing concerns that the China-made robots could pose a security risk. The city is bringing in smart robotic dogs to help with sidewalk inspections, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Ssu-chuan (李四川) said on Facebook. Equipped with a panoramic surveillance system, the robots would be able to automatically flag problems and easily navigate narrow sidewalks, making inspections faster and more accurate, Lee said. By collecting more accurate data, they would help Taipei
STATS: Taiwan’s average life expectancy of 80.77 years was lower than that of Japan, Singapore and South Korea, but higher than in China, Malaysia and Indonesia Taiwan’s average life expectancy last year increased to 80.77 years, but was still not back to its pre-COVID-19 pandemic peak of 81.32 years in 2020, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. The average life expectancy last year increased the 0.54 years from 2023, the ministry said in a statement. For men and women, the average life expectancy last year was 77.42 years and 84.30 years respectively, up 0.48 years and 0.56 years from the previous year. Taiwan’s average life expectancy peaked at 81.32 years in 2020, as the nation was relatively unaffected by the pandemic that year. The metric
TAKING STOCK: The USMC is rebuilding a once-abandoned airfield in Palau to support large-scale ground operations as China’s missile range grows, Naval News reported The US Marine Corps (USMC) is considering new sites for stockpiling equipment in the West Pacific to harden military supply chains and enhance mobility across the Indo-Pacific region, US-based Naval News reported on Saturday. The proposed sites in Palau — one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — and Australia would enable a “rapid standup of stored equipment within a year” of the program’s approval, the report said, citing documents published by the USMC last month. In Palau, the service is rebuilding a formerly abandoned World War II-era airfield and establishing ancillary structures to support large-scale ground operations “as China’s missile range and magazine
Passengers on Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) will be required to use headphones and make phone calls in gangways under new “quiet travel” rules starting Sept. 22. THSR Chairman Shih Che (史哲) told media that THSR will run a three-month promotional campaign to ensure widespread adoption of the new rules. Those repeatedly ignoring the guidance face the potential termination of their transport contract, which can result in them getting escorted off the train, according to THSR. Shih shared his hope to cultivate an environment conducive to rest and reading for the train’s passengers, stating that these changes aim to “promote self-discipline” among passengers
RSS