Former Executive Yuan secretary-general Lin Yi-shih (林益世) and his wife were questioned by the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office Special Investigation Division (SID) for a second day yesterday as investigators probe whether more officials may have been involved in the corruption scandal.
In a transcript of a tape released by Next Magazine yesterday — which was also played by several news channels — Lin allegedly asked a businessman for a bribe, saying: “There are a number of weiyuan (委員) whom I have to deal with.”
Based on the conversations, the SID said that although Lin has denied having any accomplices, it now suspects there were others involved in the bribery scandal. It is expected to launch additional raids and interrogations in the next few days.
Chen Chi-hsiang (陳啟祥), head of Ti Yung Co (地勇選礦公司), a metal-recycling company, has accused Lin of accepting a bribe of NT$63 million (US$2.15 million) to help him secure procurement contracts from China Steel Corp (CSC, 中油) and two of its subsidiaries in 2010, and of asking for a further NT$83 million this year.
Chen was questioned and released without bail by prosecutors on Saturday.
Prosecutors in charge of the case said the key evidence that convinced them that the charges could be true were two recordings of Lin allegedly negotiating with Chen about bribes on Feb. 25 and March 10 this year. Chen handed the tapes over to prosecutors after his company allegedly failed to renew its slag treatment contract with CSC because he refused Lin’s request for a bribe, according to prosecutors. In the recording of a conversation between Chen and Lin on March 10 this year, the voice of Lin’s wife, Peng Ai-chia (彭愛佳), was heard, asking: “Do you want tea?” as Lin and Chen were talking about the bribe at Lin’s residence in Greater Kaohsiung.
Peng, a TV anchorwoman, who was interviewed as a witness by the SID on Sunday for two hours, arrived at the SID office at 2pm yesterday for a second round of questioning.
Lin was detained on Monday after a 12-hour marathon questioning session late on Sunday and early on Monday, during which he admitted to some of the bribery allegations, prosecutors said.
Evidence showed Lin might collude with others to destroy evidence and so it was necessary to keep Lin in custody during the investigation, said the Taipei District Court, which, after a seven-hour hearing, granted a request by prosecutors to hold Lin incommunicado for up to two months.
If convicted on charges of accepting a bribe and demanding a bribe related to his duty, Lin could face life imprisonment and a possible fine of up to NT$100 million, according to the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例).
A Chinese freighter that allegedly snapped an undersea cable linking Taiwan proper to Penghu County is suspected of being owned by a Chinese state-run company and had docked at the ports of Kaohsiung and Keelung for three months using different names. On Tuesday last week, the Togo-flagged freighter Hong Tai 58 (宏泰58號) and its Chinese crew were detained after the Taipei-Penghu No. 3 submarine cable was severed. When the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) first attempted to detain the ship on grounds of possible sabotage, its crew said the ship’s name was Hong Tai 168, although the Automatic Identification System (AIS)
An Akizuki-class destroyer last month made the first-ever solo transit of a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship through the Taiwan Strait, Japanese government officials with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. The JS Akizuki carried out a north-to-south transit through the Taiwan Strait on Feb. 5 as it sailed to the South China Sea to participate in a joint exercise with US, Australian and Philippine forces that day. The Japanese destroyer JS Sazanami in September last year made the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s first-ever transit through the Taiwan Strait, but it was joined by vessels from New Zealand and Australia,
CHANGE OF MIND: The Chinese crew at first showed a willingness to cooperate, but later regretted that when the ship arrived at the port and refused to enter Togolese Republic-registered Chinese freighter Hong Tai (宏泰號) and its crew have been detained on suspicion of deliberately damaging a submarine cable connecting Taiwan proper and Penghu County, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement yesterday. The case would be subject to a “national security-level investigation” by the Tainan District Prosecutors’ Office, it added. The administration said that it had been monitoring the ship since 7:10pm on Saturday when it appeared to be loitering in waters about 6 nautical miles (11km) northwest of Tainan’s Chiang Chun Fishing Port, adding that the ship’s location was about 0.5 nautical miles north of the No.
SECURITY: The purpose for giving Hong Kong and Macau residents more lenient paths to permanent residency no longer applies due to China’s policies, a source said The government is considering removing an optional path to citizenship for residents from Hong Kong and Macau, and lengthening the terms for permanent residence eligibility, a source said yesterday. In a bid to prevent the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from infiltrating Taiwan through immigration from Hong Kong and Macau, the government could amend immigration laws for residents of the territories who currently receive preferential treatment, an official familiar with the matter speaking on condition of anonymity said. The move was part of “national security-related legislative reform,” they added. Under the amendments, arrivals from the Chinese territories would have to reside in Taiwan for