Taipei councilor faces 3rd questioning on corruption charges

TAIPEI (TVBS News) — A Taipei City councilor was questioned by the Taipei District Prosecutor's Office for the third time on Friday (Sept. 20) for allegedly accepting NT$47.4 million from the chairman of the Core Pacific Group (威京集團) to influence regulations for a redevelopment project in the city.

Investigators suspect that between 2018 and 2021, Chairman Sheen Ching-jing (沈慶京) directed Core Pacific Group subsidiaries to transfer NT$20 million and NT$25 million to Angela Ying's (應曉薇) association account. Ying reportedly withdrew NT$5 million, which she deposited into her boyfriend Wang Tsun-kan's (王尊侃) account, and used NT$3 million to repay loans. 

Also, Ying's assistant, Chen Chia-min (陳佳敏), allegedly withdrew NT$2 million from the association account and deposited it into Ying's account to cover credit card expenses.

Prosecutors also summoned former Taipei deputy mayor Peng Cheng-sheng (彭振聲) on Friday morning to investigate the decision-making process behind the Core Pacific City (京華城) project. By noon, authorities returned Peng to the Taipei Detention Center.

To clarify whether bribery and profiteering were involved in the increased floor area ratio (FAR) for Core Pacific City under former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je's (柯文哲) administration, investigators have launched a series of searches and interviews since late August. The court has currently approved the detention of five individuals: Ko, Peng, Sheen, Ying, and Ying's assistant Wu Shun-min (吳順民).