The High Court today upheld a not-guilty verdict for three defendants, including former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), in connection to a case involving the sale of three media companies by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) that resulted in significant losses.
The case may be appealed.
Ma was indicted in 2018 and acquitted by the Taipei District Court in October 2021.
Photo: Taipei Times
Prosecutors said he was involved in negotiations over the sale of China Television Co (中視), Broadcasting Corp of China (中廣) and Central Motion Picture Co (中影) at below market value between 2005 and 2007, causing losses to the KMT-controlled Central Investment Co (中央投資) of more than NT$7.2 billion (US$229 million).
Charges were brought against three defendants: Ma, former Central Investment Co chairman Chang Che-chen (張哲琛) and former general manager Wang Hai-ching (汪海清).
The charges included contravening the Securities and Exchange Act (證券交易法) through special breach of trust.
In the October 2021 ruling, all three defendants were found not guilty.
Also indicted were former KMT legislator Alex Tsai (蔡正元), his wife Queena Hung (洪菱霙) and her father, Hung Hsin-hsing (洪信行), on charges of embezzlement, breach of trust, money laundering, irregular stock transactions and contraventions of the Business Entity Accounting Act (商業會計法).
Tsai was sentenced to three years and six months in prison for embezzlement and a further six months for contravening the Business Entity Accounting Act, commutable to a fine.
Prosecutors said that Tsai brokered the deal and exploited his position as a legislator to embezzle company proceeds, siphoning off up to NT$280.33 million through his company, Apollo Investment Co (阿波羅投資).
His verdict was also upheld today by the High Court.
Prosecutors delivered closing arguments in their appeal to the High Court on Sept. 5, saying that the first-instance rulings were “absurd” and seeking a conviction for Ma, Chang and Wang.
The defendants were summoned on Sept. 8 for further questioning, during which they again pleaded not guilty.
Today’s verdict upheld the not-guilty ruling for Ma, Chang and Wang, and upheld the prior verdict and sentencing for Tsai.
The amount of criminal proceeds subject to confiscation was also reduced from NT$280.32 million to NT$239.19 million.
However, an additional NT$41.13 million was ordered confiscated from Hung.
The High Prosecutors’ Office said it would investigate whether to appeal again.
The case has been in litigation for seven years, with more than three years of High Court proceedings.
All six defendants have denied any wrongdoing throughout the proceedings.
Ma’s office today in a statement said the former president is deeply relieved and grateful that justice has been upheld.
It also thanked the judiciary for its fairness and the judges for their impartial adjudication.
Ma claimed that the case was initiated by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in collaboration with certain media outlets and prosecutors, but the outcome proved his innocence.
Not a single dollar entered Ma’s pocket, the statement said, adding that the DPP had pursued the case for more than a decade, wasting judicial resources and increasing social division to persecute political opponents.
Additional reporting by CNA
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