A fugitive former senior executive of the bankrupt Chung Shing Bank, convicted in a scandal involving NT$7.4 billion (US$239 million) in illegal loans, was repatriated from China yesterday, law enforcement authorities said.
Wang Hsuan-jen (王宣仁), a former general manager of the Kaohsiung-based bank who fled to China in May last year, was repatriated from Fuzhou City, Fujian Province, to Matsu aboard the Chinese ferry The Strait.
After arriving in Matsu, Wang was airlifted aboard a police helicopter to Taipei under the escort of Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) officials.
PHOTO: CHIU CHUN-FU, TAIPEI TIMES
The repatriation made Wang the first major Taiwanese economic criminal to be repatriated from China since the Kinmen Agreement was signed on Sept. 12, 1990.
CIB officials said Chinese authorities had planned to repatriate Wang on Jan. 29, but this was postponed as a result of inclement weather and rough seas.
APPRECIATION
Taiwanese prosecutors have expressed appreciation toward China for taking the initiative to arrest Wang in Shanghai on Jan. 24.
The prosecutors urged China to continue to cooperate with Taiwan by repatriating other notorious Taiwanese fugitives, including former Chung Shing Bank chairman Wang Yu-yun (
Wang Hsuan-jen, who is not related to Wang Yu-yun and Wang Chih-hsiung, was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison in April last year for his role in the illegal loan case involving Taiwan Pineapple Corp. He fled Taiwan before he was due to begin serving his sentence on May 3 last year.
Wang Hsuan-jen was convicted of conspiring with Pineapple Corp chairman Huang Tsung-hung (
AUCTION
Chung Shing Bank was auctioned off by the government-run Central Deposit Insurance Corp to Union Bank of Taiwan in 2005.
Wang Hsuan-jen was one of 25 Taiwanese criminals repatriated from China yesterday. The other 24 included fugitives and those who have served their time in China.
Meanwhile, Taiwanese authorities repatriated Chinese hijacker Wong Zhihua (
EVA Air is prohibiting the use of portable chargers on board all flights starting from Saturday, while China Airlines is advising passengers not to use them, following the lead of South Korean airlines. Current regulations prohibit portable chargers and lithium batteries from check-in luggage and require them to be properly packed in carry-on baggage, EVA Air said. To improve onboard safety, portable chargers and spare lithium batteries would be prohibited from use on all fights starting on Saturday, it said. Passengers are advised to fully charge electronic devices before boarding and use the AC and USB charging outlets at their seat, it said. South
Hong Kong-based American singer-songwriter Khalil Fong (方大同) has passed away at the age of 41, Fong’s record label confirmed yesterday. “With unwavering optimism in the face of a relentless illness for five years, Khalil Fong gently and gracefully bid farewell to this world on the morning of February 21, 2025, stepping into the next realm of existence to carry forward his purpose and dreams,” Fu Music wrote on the company’s official Facebook page. “The music and graphic novels he gifted to the world remain an eternal testament to his luminous spirit, a timeless treasure for generations to come,” it said. Although Fong’s
WAR SIMULATION: The developers of the board game ‘2045’ consulted experts and analysts, and made maps based on real-life Chinese People’s Liberation Army exercises To stop invading Chinese forces seizing Taiwan, board gamer Ruth Zhong chooses the nuclear option: Dropping an atomic bomb on Taipei to secure the nation’s freedom and her victory. The Taiwanese board game 2045 is a zero-sum contest of military strategy and individual self-interest that puts players on the front lines of a simulated Chinese attack. Their battlefield game tactics would determine the theoretical future of Taiwan, which in the real world faces the constant threat of a Chinese invasion. “The most interesting part of this game is that you have to make continuous decisions based on the evolving situation,
China’s military buildup in the southern portion of the first island chain poses a serious threat to Taiwan’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply, a defense analyst warned. Writing in a bulletin on the National Defense and Security Research’s Web site on Thursday, Huang Tsung-ting (黃宗鼎) said that China might choke off Taiwan’s energy supply without it. Beginning last year, China entrenched its position in the southern region of the first island chain, often with Russia’s active support, he said. In May of the same year, a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) force consisting of a Type 054A destroyer, Type 055 destroyer,