Recently, the chairman of the People’s Party and former mayor of Taipei, Ko Wen-je, was detained and denied visitation rights in the Jinghua City case. The Taipei District Court ruled on September 2 that Ko Wen-je could be released on his own recognizance, but the prosecution filed an appeal. Today (September 4), the High Court overturned the original ruling and remanded the case back to the Taipei District Court for further deliberation. The court stated that a detention hearing will be reopened on the morning of the 5th.
It was revealed that Shen Qingjing, the chairman of the Wei Jing Group, had repeatedly petitioned the then-administration of Mayor Ko Wen-je in Taipei City through Councilor Ying Xiaowei to relax the floor area ratio in the process of obtaining volume incentives for the Jinghua City project. It was questioned by the public whether senior officials in the city government were involved in supporting the developer, as the floor area ratio for Jinghua City increased from 392% to 560%, and then further to 840%.
The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office launched an investigation into the Jinghua City case, and on August 27 and 28, Shen Qingjing, Ying Xiaowei, and Ying Xiaowei’s assistant Wu Shunmin were taken into custody or summoned for questioning. After interrogation, the prosecutor charged Shen Qingjing, Ying Xiaowei, and Wu Shunmin with suspected crimes of dereliction of duty and bribery under the Anti-Corruption Act and ordered them to be detained.
On August 30, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office initiated a search and summoning operation. The prosecutor determined that both Ko Wen-je and Peng Zhensheng were suspected of violating the Anti-Corruption Act by dereliction of duty, corruption, and benefiting from the crimes, leading to their detention. In the early morning of September 2, the Taipei District Court ruled to release Ko Wen-je on his own recognizance and detained Peng Zhensheng.
Both the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office and Peng Zhensheng’s lawyer appealed the court’s decision. The prosecutor stated on September 3 that they had filed an appeal, arguing that the court’s rejection of the request to detain Ko Wen-je was not justified and providing additional evidence to support their position. Peng Zhensheng’s lawyer also appealed, claiming that there was no reason or necessity to detain Peng Zhensheng. On September 4, the High Court overturned the original ruling and remanded it back to the Taipei District Court.
The High Court concluded that based on the testimonies of Peng Zhensheng, former director of the Taipei City Military Service Bureau Zhu Yahu, witness Taipei City Urban Planning Commissioner Shao Xiupai, and records of conversations between Zhu Yahu and Ying Xiaowei, along with information found in the defendants’ belongings, the serious nature of Shen Qingjing bribing Ying Xiaowei, and the active involvement of the defendants in the Jinghua City case, there was still a need to investigate whether Ko Wen-je was unaware or doubted the circumstances of the case as claimed.
The court criticized the lower court for not evaluating all the evidence presented by the prosecution comprehensively and rushed to conclude that the prosecutor failed to explain the grave suspicions against the defendants, thus ruling in favor of the appeal. Additionally, Peng Zhensheng’s appeal lacked his signature, seal, or fingerprint, and he was requested to rectify this before a new ruling is issued.
The Taipei District Court announced that Ko Wen-je’s case had been sent back by the Taiwan High Court for separate handling. A hearing was scheduled for September 5 at 9:30 a.m. at the Taipei District Court’s Criminal Division 15, initially to address procedural matters before the detention hearing.
The People’s Party expressed regret over the High Court’s decision, emphasizing that Ko Wen-je had cooperated with the investigation and criticized the massive search of the People’s Party’s central office, the Taiwan Glass Tower building office, and Ko Wen-je’s residence by the authorities, calling for due process to be respected rather than trampling on legal procedures to incriminate individuals.
The party maintained that Ko Wen-je had always focused on Taipei City’s development and citizen welfare during his tenure as mayor, advocating for professionalism and lawful administration. They affirmed that the consideration of the Jinghua City floor area ratio respected the collective decisions of the Urban Planning Review Committee. They urged the judges to uphold impartiality, ascertain facts according to evidence, and reveal the truth promptly.
Former Director of the Taipei City Urban Development Bureau Lin Zhaomin stated today that the floor area ratio of Jinghua City was a critical responsibility of the bureau during the tenures of former mayors Chen Shui-bian, Hao Long-bin, and Ko Wen-je. Thus, all bureau staff involved in handling the floor area ratio of Jinghua City would have reported to the mayor regularly. As to whether Ko Wen-je was aware of these matters, the answers are clear to everyone.
In a recent interview outside the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office, Ko Wen-je claimed that he was unaware of the 840% floor area ratio for Jinghua City until it was disclosed by the media in March or April. He maintained that there was no evidence implicating him in any interference.
When asked by the media today as he left the Taiwan Glass Tower building office, Ko Wen-je only responded, “Let’s talk about that in court tomorrow (5th).” He did not confirm his confidence in the upcoming detention hearing when pressed by reporters.
The Taipei District Court disclosed that Shen Qingjing’s appointed defense attorney would file an appeal no later than the 5th, while co-defendant Taipei City Councilor from the Kuomintang, Ying Xiaowei, had not lodged an appeal yet. Wu Shunmin filed an appeal today.
On the morning of the 5th, the Taipei City Police Department’s Zhongzheng 1st Division released a statement announcing that a “Justice for Judiciary” rally would be held on Ai Guo West Road in Zhongzheng District on the 5th and 6th from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Traffic control measures would be enforced along the eastbound and westbound slow lanes of Ai Guo West Road (excluding Bo’ai Road to Yanping South Road) starting at 8 a.m. on the 5th, with 400 officers deployed for traffic management and security.