Taipei prosecutors yesterday sought a prison sentence of 30 years and an unprecedented fine of NT$1.71 billion (US$52.13 million) for fugitive former Rebar Group (力霸集團) chairman Wang You-theng (王又曾) as they indicted him on embezzlement and other charges.
Eight members of Wang's family were also indicted on six different charges, as well as 98 employees of the Rebar Group.
Wang was indicted on charges related to the Securities Transaction Law (證券交易法), Banking Law (銀行法), Bill Financing Law (票券金融管理法), Money Laundering Control Law (洗錢防制法), Business Accounting Law (商業會計法) and Criminal Code.
Wang's wife Wang Chin She-ying (王金世英) faces a NT$710 million fine and 28 years in prison if convicted.
She was charged with violations of the Securities Transaction Law, Money Laundering Control Law, Business Accounting Law and Criminal Code, with prosecutors suggesting a NT$710 million fine and 28-year prison sentence.
The couple were declared wanted fugitives by the Taipei District Prosecutors' Office on Jan. 25. Their arrest warrant is valid for 25 years.
"We will send a copy of the indictment to US authorities, and hope they will help send Wang and his wife back to Taiwan as soon as possible," Taipei District Prosecutors' Office spokesman Lin Jinn-tsun (
The fines prosecutors are seeking against the Wang family total NT$5.42 billion.
Taipei Prosecutor-General Yen Da-ho (
The investigation required two full months and resulted in 100 boxes of documents and a 940-page indictment book.
The case revolves around 80 companies and more than NT$70 billion in missing funds.
During the investigation, a total of 96 people were banned from leaving the country for interrogation purposes.
The Rebar Group made front pages around the nation when it filed for bankruptcy on Jan. 4 and investigators discovered that Wang You-theng and his wife had left Taiwan for China on Dec. 30.
On Jan. 11, Wang Lin-i (王令一) and Frank Wang (王世展) became the first two members of the Wang family to be detained in the investigation. Wang Lin-tai (王令台) was detained on Jan. 23. Wang Lin-mei (王令楣) was questioned but released on NT$8 million bail on Jan. 27.
On Jan. 29, Wang Lin-ke (王令可) was summoned and then released on NT$6 million bail the next day.
On Jan. 31, Lawrence Wang (王令興) was interrogated and released on NT$5 million bail, while his brother Wang Lin-chiao (王令僑) was detained on the same day.
Wang You-theng and his wife are suspected of having embezzled billions of dollars in corporate funds from the Rebar Group before fleeing to China and then to the US.
Taiwanese officials are trying in vain to persuade US authorities to deport Wang You-theng from Los Angeles to face charges, but he remains in detention at a San Pedro immigration holding center.
He has been incarcerated there since Feb. 2, facing charges of illegal entry into the US.
His wife, who holds US citizenship, was allowed to enter the US.
Wang You-theng was arrested upon his return to the US from an abortive attempt to travel to Myanmar via Singapore, because both his Republic of China and Dominican Republic passports had been canceled, rendering his US visa invalid.
EXPRESSING GRATITUDE: Without its Taiwanese partners which are ‘working around the clock,’ Nvidia could not meet AI demand, CEO Jensen Huang said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and US-based artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer Nvidia Corp have partnered with each other on silicon photonics development, Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) said. Speaking with reporters after he met with TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) in Taipei on Friday, Huang said his company was working with the world’s largest contract chipmaker on silicon photonics, but admitted it was unlikely for the cooperation to yield results any time soon, and both sides would need several years to achieve concrete outcomes. To have a stake in the silicon photonics supply chain, TSMC and
SILICON VALLEY HUB: The office would showcase Taiwan’s strengths in semiconductors and artificial intelligence, and help Taiwanese start-ups connect with global opportunities Taiwan has established an office in Palo Alto, one of the principal cities of Silicon Valley in California, aimed at helping Taiwanese technology start-ups gain global visibility, the National Development Council said yesterday. The “Startup Island Taiwan Silicon Valley hub” at No. 299 California Avenue is focused on “supporting start-ups and innovators by providing professional consulting, co-working spaces, and community platforms,” the council said in a post on its Web site. The office is the second overseas start-up hub established by the council, after a similar site was set up in Tokyo in September last year. Representatives from Taiwanese start-ups, local businesses and
‘DETERRENT’: US national security adviser-designate Mike Waltz said that he wants to speed up deliveries of weapons purchased by Taiwan to deter threats from China US president-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for US secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, affirmed his commitment to peace in the Taiwan Strait during his confirmation hearing in Washington on Tuesday. Hegseth called China “the most comprehensive and serious challenge to US national security” and said that he would aim to limit Beijing’s expansion in the Indo-Pacific region, Voice of America reported. He would also adhere to long-standing policies to prevent miscalculations, Hegseth added. The US Senate Armed Services Committee hearing was the first for a nominee of Trump’s incoming Cabinet, and questions mostly focused on whether he was fit for the
IDENTITY: Compared with other platforms, TikTok’s algorithm pushes a ‘disproportionately high ratio’ of pro-China content, a study has found Young Taiwanese are increasingly consuming Chinese content on TikTok, which is changing their views on identity and making them less resistant toward China, researchers and politicians were cited as saying by foreign media. Asked to suggest the best survival strategy for a small country facing a powerful neighbor, students at National Chia-Yi Girls’ Senior High School said “Taiwan must do everything to avoid provoking China into attacking it,” the Financial Times wrote on Friday. Young Taiwanese between the ages of 20 and 24 in the past were the group who most strongly espoused a Taiwanese identity, but that is no longer
RSS