The High Court yesterday upheld the guilty verdict handed to former air force officer Lou Wen-ching (樓文卿) for providing internal air force documents to Chinese agents, but reduced the sentence to 12 years in prison in a third retrial of the case that has been ongoing for more than eight years.
Judges said they found sufficient evidence that Lou took classified materials from the air force and went to a foreign country to pass them on to a Chinese official, so Lou has been convicted of several offenses related to espionage and undermining national security.
Lou contravened Article 17 of the Criminal Code of the Armed Forces (陸海空軍刑法) by “committing an act of espionage for an enemy” and Article 76 for “offenses of malfeasance in office,” as well as the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例) for accepting bribes, they said.
Photo: Wang Min-wei, Taipei Times
The ruling included the confiscation of the money Lou earned from selling classified military materials, about NT$170,000, and deprivation of civil rights for eight years, which can still be appealed.
Lou during the second retrial in November last year was sentenced to 17 years in prison and deprived of his civil rights for 10 years, which overturned a ruling in September 2020 that acquitted him.
His sentence was reduced to 12 years in the third retrial, which judges said was due to the fact that the money Lou earned was not a large amount and the materials he handed over were not of “high-level secrecy,” despite being in locked storage in a controlled unit office.
Lou did not attend the retrial, as he was granted bail at the end of last month. He wears an electronic device that monitors his movement.
Judges said Lou received training at the Air Force Academy, was a military instructor at the school for years and had been promoted to lieutenant colonel.
“He would know the basics of safeguarding sensitive materials against enemy espionage, and that he should protect national security,” they said. “Yet important files and documents related to air force flight missions he was assigned to keep safe, he passed on to the Chinese side in exchange for monetary rewards, assisting in Chinese espionage.”
“Lou’s actions harmed the clean ethics and good reputation of his fellow military officials,” they added.
The court filing said Lou served as a military instructor at an air force unit from July 2009 to 2015, during which he was convinced by fellow air force officer Liu Chi-ju (劉其儒) to go to a foreign country to meet and hand over internal documents in exchange for money.
An outstanding wanted bulletin is still out for Liu, who fled abroad, after he was convicted of spying on China’s behalf.
Lou, Liu and another air force officer, colonel Ko Chi-hsien (葛季賢), were part of spy networks set up by Chinese intelligence officer Zhen Xiaojiang (鎮小江), who recruited Taiwanese military personnel to obtain and pass on classified materials.
Zhen had enticed them with financial rewards, according to investigation findings.
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