The Taipei District Prosecutors Office indicted 11 individuals, including former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je, in four major corruption cases, including the Living Mall illegal floor area ratio bonus case. The Taipei District Court sentenced Ko Wen-je on March 26 to 13 years in prison and 6 years deprivation of civil rights for violating the Anti-Corruption Act, 2 years and 3 years 6 months for embezzlement, and 2 years 6 months for breach of trust, totaling 17 years in prison and 6 years deprivation of civil rights. The 391-page judgment, exceeding 290,000 characters, has been released, and the judgment video has been viewed over 61,000 times on YouTube.
The Taipei District Prosecutors Office on December 26, 2024, indicted 11 individuals, including Ko Wen-je, Chairman Shen Ching-ching of Weijing Group, former Taipei Deputy Mayor Peng Chen-sheng, former Director of the Department of Urban Development Huang Ching-mao, former Executive Secretary of the Urban Planning Commission Shao Hsiu-pei, Living Mall supervisor Chang Chih-cheng, Kuomintang Taipei City Councilor Ying Hsiao-wei, Ying's assistant Wu Shun-min, former Chairman of Taipei Metro Corporation Lee Wen-tsung, former Chairman of Muke Public Relations Company Lee Wen-chuan, and accountant Tuan Mu-cheng, on charges of violating the Anti-Corruption Act for accepting bribes in breach of duty, profiteering, embezzlement of public funds, and breach of trust.
According to the Taipei District Prosecutors Office's indictment, the entire case is divided into four major sections: "Living Mall illegal floor area ratio bonus case," "Political donation embezzlement case," "Breach of trust case for misappropriating funds from the Chungwang Foundation to pay campaign staff salaries," and "Ko Wen-je's political donation account false reporting case."
The Taipei District Court announced its verdict on March 26. For Ko Wen-je, he was sentenced to 13 years in prison and deprived of civil rights for 6 years for violating the Anti-Corruption Act by accepting bribes in breach of duty; sentenced to 2 years and 3 years 6 months respectively for embezzlement of public funds; and sentenced to 2 years 6 months for joint breach of trust. The four charges were merged for a total sentence of 17 years in prison and 6 years deprivation of civil rights.
The Taipei District Court today released the full judgment, which consists of 391 pages, with 273,312 characters and 294,183 characters excluding spaces.
The Taipei District Court uploaded the video recordings of the oral arguments and pronouncement of judgment for the Living Mall and Ko Wen-je political donation cases to the YouTube channel "Taipei District Court Criminal Division" for public broadcast at 10:00 AM on March 31. There are 16 videos, including oral arguments from December 15 last year to the first-instance judgment on March 26 this year. As of 1:00 PM today, the video of the judgment pronouncement has been viewed over 61,000 times. (Editor: Chen Ching-fang) 1150410
FACT BOX
- Source: CNA (Central News Agency)
- Category: regulation
FAQ
Who were the main individuals indicted by the Taipei District Prosecutors Office on December 26, 2024, in connection with the Living Mall case and related charges?
The Taipei District Prosecutors Office indicted 11 individuals including Ko Wen-je, Shen Ching-ching of Weijing Group, Peng Chen-sheng, Huang Ching-mao, Shao Hsiu-pei, Chang Chih-cheng, Ying Hsiao-wei, Wu Shun-min, Lee Wen-tsung, Lee Wen-chuan, and Tuan Mu-cheng on December 26, 2024.
What were the four major sections of the case as outlined in the indictment by the Taipei District Prosecutors Office?
The four major sections of the case were the Living Mall illegal floor area ratio bonus case, the political donation embezzlement case, the breach of trust case involving misappropriated Chungwang Foundation funds, and Ko Wen-je's political donation account false reporting case.
What sentence did Ko Wen-je receive from the Taipei District Court on March 26, and what charges contributed to this outcome?
Ko Wen-je was sentenced to 17 years in prison and 6 years deprivation of civil rights on March 26, with charges including 13 years for accepting bribes, 2 years and 3 years 6 months for embezzlement, and 2 years 6 months for breach of trust.
How long is the full judgment document released by the Taipei District Court, and what are the character counts provided?
The full judgment released by the Taipei District Court is 391 pages long, containing 273,312 characters including annotations and 294,183 characters excluding annotations.
What specific charges led to Ko Wen-je's conviction under the Anti-Corruption Act, and what was the individual sentence for each charge?
Ko Wen-je was convicted of accepting bribes in breach of duty (13 years), embezzlement of public funds (2 years and 3 years 6 months for two counts), and joint breach of trust (2 years 6 months), all under the Anti-Corruption Act.