Taiwan's "Creative Private Room" Child Sex Exploitation Case: Former School Teacher and Others Sentenced

Supreme Court Upholds Sentences Against Members of the "Creative Private Room" Forum, With One Case Remanded for Further Review.

The Supreme Court in Taiwan has upheld the sentences of multiple individuals involved in the "Creative Private Room" online forum, which was used to sell and distribute child sexual exploitation imagery. The case, which involved former elementary school teacher Lin Ching-an, saw several members receiving prison terms.

The original case involved Lin Ching-an, who operated the forum along with an individual known as "Old Ma." They were responsible for reviewing content and setting prices for the illicit videos.

Eleven individuals were initially sentenced in the second instance, with prison terms ranging from 1 year and 5 months to 12 years. Seven of them appealed to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court dismissed the appeals for all but one defendant, upholding the original sentences.

The affirmed sentences include those of Li Yu-te, sentenced to 6 years; Hsu Cheng-yen, 5 years and 10 months; Chen Yen-ju, 4 years and 8 months; Liu Wen-yeh, 1 year and 9 months; Kao Yi-chang, 1 year and 8 months; and Tung Chin-yu, 1 year and 5 months.

The Supreme Court also noted that the sentences for Lin Ching-an (6 years and 3 months) and Chuang Kai-wen (2 years and 2 months) were finalized after the second instance as they did not appeal. Fan Chung-he (4 years and 10 months) and Wu Tsung-yu (1 year and 6 months) withdrew their appeals, confirming their sentences.

Regarding the remanded case, the Supreme Court cited errors in the lower court's assessment of whether Chen Tsung-chun knew the victims were minors and whether he was involved in profiting by filming them. The case was sent back for further proceedings.