The Supreme Court earlier this month rejected the appeal of former Military News Agency news desk deputy chief and lieutenant colonel Kung Fan-chia (孔繁嘉), finalizing his sentence for attempting to recruit spies for China at five years and four months.
In July 2024, the Taoyuan District Court sentenced Kung to five years and six months in prison after he pleaded guilty.
In June, the High Court reduced the sentence to five years and four months.
Photo: Chang Wen-chuan, Taipei Times
To explain the reduced sentence, the judges said that Kung had not started trying to recruit spies until after leaving active service, pleaded guilty to the crimes and returned all illicit gains.
Kung was found to have used sponsored trips and other incentives to recruit active-duty and retired military personnel to develop an organization tasked with obtaining military secrets for China, although his efforts were unsuccessful.
The High Court found Kung guilty of bribery under the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例) and one count under the National Security Act (國家安全法).
He was initially recruited by officials from China’s Xiamen operating under the Chinese People’s Liberation Army's Eastern Theater Command, the High Court said in a statement last year.
In November 2006 and April 2008, he accepted US$6,000 and US$5,700 respectively to invite active-duty and retired military personnel to visit China or third locations on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party, it said.
Kung retired on Aug. 17, 2012, but received 60,000 yuan (US$8,718 at the current exchange rate) from his Chinese handlers between 2014 and 2016, it said.
He continued to attempt to recruit personnel until the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, it added.
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