Bribery Scandal Rocks Taiwan: Witness Alleges Payments to Former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je

Former Executive Admits Bribing Ko Wen-je in Real Estate Development Case

Taipei, Taiwan - A bombshell revelation emerged from the Taipei District Court on Wednesday, as a former executive of the Core Pacific Group confessed to bribing former Taiwan People's Party (TPP) leader Ko Wen-je (柯文哲). The bribery is linked to a real estate development project that occurred during Ko's tenure as Taipei mayor from 2014 to 2022.

Former Core Pacific Development Corporation Chairman Chu Yea-hu (朱亞虎), testifying as a witness, admitted to delivering bribes. The payments were allegedly intended to illegally inflate the floor area ratio (FAR) of the Core Pacific City redevelopment project in Songshan District, ultimately boosting the property's value.

"I admit to bribery. I admit guilt," Chu declared to the court.

According to Chu, the scheme began approximately 18 months after joining the Core Pacific Group. Chairman Sheen Ching-jing (沈慶京) reportedly instructed him to engage with Ko, officials from the Taipei City Government Department of Urban Development, and Taipei City councilors regarding the redevelopment project.

Chu recounted his initial meeting with Ko in May 2016, arranged through Tsai Pi-ru (蔡壁如), then director of the mayor's office. The development project was briefly discussed during this meeting.

In February 2020, Chu facilitated a meeting between Sheen and Ko, arranged through Tung Chin-yeh (董晉曄), then the mayor's confidential secretary.

Although Chu was not present during the hour-long conversation, he stated to the court, "If they didn't talk about the Core Pacific City case, what did they talk about?"

Chu further testified that Sheen directed him to manage NT$2.1 million in political donations to the TPP, made under the names of Core Pacific Group employees. While Sheen did not explicitly state the purpose, Chu believed the donations were linked to the company's efforts to increase the project's FAR.

In exchange for his testimony, Chu received a deferred prosecution and was ordered to pay NT$3.3 million to the public treasury within three months.

The Taipei District Prosecutors Office previously indicted Ko, Sheen, and nine others in December on charges including bribery, embezzlement, and breach of trust under the Anti-Corruption Act.

Other defendants include Pong Cheng-sheng (彭振聲), former Taipei deputy mayor; Huang Ching-mao (黃景茂), former head of the Taipei City Government Department of Urban Development; and Shao Hsiu-pei (邵琇珮), executive secretary at the city government's Urban Planning Commission.

Also indicted were Kuomintang (KMT) Taipei City Councilor Ying Hsiao-wei (應曉薇), Ying's assistant Wu Shun-min (吳順民), Core Pacific supervisor Chang Chih-cheng (張志澄), Lee Wen-tsung (李文宗), then head of the mayor's office, Lee Wen-chuan (李文娟), chairperson of MuKo Public Relations, and accountant Tuanmu Cheng (端木正).

The court also summoned Ko, Sheen, Lee, and Ying for cross-examination at the hearing on Thursday.

Among the observers in the courtroom were Ko's wife Chen Pei-chi (陳佩琪), TPP leader Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌), and TPP lawmaker Huang Shan-shan (黃珊珊).