A verdict in the trial of former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) over allegations that he accepted bribes in the Core Pacific City development project and misused political donations would be handed down in late March, a Taipei judge said on Wednesday.
The chief justice of the panel at the Taipei District Court announced that the ruling in the consolidated case involving Ko and 10 other suspects is to be delivered at 2:30pm on March 26 following oral arguments to be completed on Wednesday.
Ko was detained on Sept. 5 last year and indicted two months later on four charges, including accepting NT$17.1 million (US$543,202) in bribes relating to the Core Pacific City development project while serving as Taipei mayor and embezzling political donations during his presidential campaign last year.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Prosecutors are seeking a 28-and-a-half year sentence for Ko.
In the Core Pacific City development project case, Ko is accused of receiving bribes from Core Pacific Group chairman Sheen Ching-jing (沈慶京) in exchange for granting a massive, illegal increase in the project’s floor-area ratio (FAR).
During the hearing on his suspected involvement in the Core Pacific City project, the former Taiwan People’s Party chairman said that he only knew that the project was submitted for review by city government agencies and took no further part in it.
Ko rejected the prosecutors’ “official-business collusion” allegations, saying their attempts to “slander” and “frame” him have harmed civil servants, leaving them hesitant to act for fear of being accused of favoritism.
After the hearing, Ko told reporters that he has endured huge hardship throughout the case.
He was released in September after posting bail of NT$70 million, bringing an end to his year-long incommunicado detention.
Ko said that the judiciary must never become a tool for political gain, adding that the judicial system is in dire need of reform.
Although there has been no live broadcast of the trial hearings, recordings were made and would be made public, Ko said, adding that they would provide the public with a better opportunity to understand the full context and history of the case.
Prosecutors told the court that Ko had shown a poor attitude following the alleged crimes.
They said he repeatedly cursed at prosecutors during the trial and threw objects at them, while also using social media to distort trial proceedings and witness testimony, and to attack prosecutors, judges and witnesses.
Ko allowed his supporters to pressure the judiciary, including by surrounding the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office and issuing online threats, they said.
Ko’s conduct demonstrated a lack of respect for the judiciary and placed prosecutors, as well as district and high-court judges, under intense pressure, they said.
Meanwhile, Taipei City Councilor Angela Ying (應曉薇), another suspect, expressed hope that the trial would clear her name.
Ying was indicted for receiving NT$52.5 million in three installments from Sheen to facilitate the FAR change.
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