Prosecutors have arrested a lieutenant colonel who allegedly planned to defect to China by flying a helicopter to a Chinese aircraft carrier near the median line of the Taiwan Strait in exchange for US$15 million, an online magazine reported yesterday.
The report by the Chinese-language CTWant was confirmed by the Ministry of National Defense, which later said it had taken measures to minimize the damage caused by the case.
After receiving internal reports about the incident, the ministry and national security agencies conducted counterintelligence investigations and requested a judicial investigation, the report said.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
CTWant said that a lieutenant colonel surnamed Hsieh (謝) of the army’s Aviation and Special Forces Command was approached by a Chinese espionage group led by retired military officer Chen Yu-xin (陳裕炘).
Hsieh was invited to Bangkok to meet with Chen and two people who claimed to be officers of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, it said.
They offered to evacuate Hsieh’s family to Thailand in the event of a cross-strait conflict and provide him with NT$200,000 per month, and in exchange, Hsieh would fly a CH-47F Chinook helicopter to a Chinese aircraft carrier in the Strait, the report said.
In June, the group allegedly told Hsieh that when a Chinese aircraft carrier passed within 24 nautical miles (44.5km) of Taiwan during a military drill, he would be able to land on the ship within five minutes, after flying the helicopter at low altitude along the coastline, it said.
Hsieh deemed the risk too high and declined, it said.
The group then increased their offer to half the cost of the helicopter, which would be US$15 million, saying they would pay US$1 million to US$2 million upfront, it said.
Hsieh discussed the detailed plan with them, saying that if the carrier was 24 nautical miles off Kaohsiung, he would be able to land on the carrier without crossing the median line, and would not likely be intercepted by the armed forces, the report said.
Prosecutors and investigators received a tip about the plan and arrested Hsieh and the person who passed on information to him before the operation was realized, it said.
Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) told reporters that Beijing’s attempts to enlist Taiwanese in espionage have been considerable.
The armed forces has stepped up its efforts in dealing with such cases in the past few years, bringing suspects to justice, sharing information with prosecutors and controlling any damage caused, he said.
The military would never cover up such cases, he added.
Meanwhile, the Taoyuan District Prosecutors’ Office charged former lieutenant colonel and Military News Agency deputy director Kung Fan-chia (孔繁嘉) with contravening the National Security Act (國家安全法).
Kung allegedly helped form a Chinese espionage organization in the military, receiving US$11,700 and 60,000 yuan (US$8,361) in exchange, prosecutors said.
He invited military officers to Vietnam, aiming to connect them with Chinese intelligence officials, prosecutors said, adding that the plan failed as Kung was turned down by the officers he approached.
The prosecutors’ office asked the court to issue a severe punishment.
Additional reporting by Yu Jui-jen
UPDATED (3:40pm): A suspected gas explosion at a shopping mall in Taichung this morning has killed four people and injured 20 others, as emergency responders continue to investigate. The explosion occurred on the 12th floor of the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi in Situn District (西屯) at 11:33am. One person was declared dead at the scene, while three people were declared deceased later after receiving emergency treatment. Another 20 people sustained major or minor injuries. The Taichung Fire Bureau said it received a report of the explosion at 11:33am and sent rescuers to respond. The cause of the explosion is still under investigation, it said. The National Fire
ACCOUNTABILITY: The incident, which occured at a Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store in Taichung, was allegedly caused by a gas explosion on the 12th floor Shin Kong Group (新光集團) president Richard Wu (吳昕陽) yesterday said the company would take responsibility for an apparent gas explosion that resulted in four deaths and 26 injuries at Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang Store in Taichung yesterday. The Taichung Fire Bureau at 11:33am yesterday received a report saying that people were injured after an explosion at the department store on Section 3 of Taiwan Boulevard in Taichung’s Situn District (西屯). It sent 56 ambulances and 136 paramedics to the site, with the people injured sent to Cheng Ching Hospital’s Chung Kang Branch, Wuri Lin Shin Hospital, Taichung Veterans General Hospital or Chung
ALL-IN-ONE: A company in Tainan and another in New Taipei City offer tours to China during which Taiwanese can apply for a Chinese ID card, the source said The National Immigration Agency and national security authorities have identified at least five companies that help Taiwanese apply for Chinese identification cards while traveling in China, a source said yesterday. The issue has garnered attention in the past few months after YouTuber “Pa Chiung” (八炯) said that there are companies in Taiwan that help Taiwanese apply for Chinese documents. Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) last week said that three to five public relations firms in southern and northern Taiwan have allegedly assisted Taiwanese in applying for Chinese ID cards and were under investigation for potential contraventions of the Act Governing
‘LAWFUL USE’: The last time a US warship transited the Taiwan Strait was on Oct. 20 last year, and this week’s transit is the first of US President Donald Trump’s second term Two US military vessels transited the Taiwan Strait from Sunday through early yesterday, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement, the first such mission since US President Donald Trump took office last month. The two vessels sailed south through the Strait, the ministry said, adding that it closely monitored nearby airspace and waters at the time and observed nothing unusual. The ministry did not name the two vessels, but the US Navy identified them as the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson and the Pathfinder-class survey ship USNS Bowditch. The ships carried out a north-to-south transit from
RSS