TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Kaohsiung City Councilor Huang Shao-ting (黃紹庭) assured the public on Friday (Sept. 27) that he did not leave Taiwan to avoid a corruption investigation, and said the allegations against him are false.

Huang said that in the time he has been in government, every expense claim he made has been legal. “There are absolutely no instances of inflating expenses for assistants, or public funds entering my own pockets,” he said in a video published by UDN.

Prosecutors suspect Huang of fraudulently claiming fees for assistants. On Thursday they searched Huang’s home and other locations as part of their investigation, though the councilor boarded a flight out of Taiwan before they arrived.

“Shao-ting proactively contacted investigators at the earliest possible time after landing to inform them of my whereabouts, and my intentions,” Huang said, referring to himself in the third person.

Huang also stated the Line group of the Kuomintang’s Kaohsiung branch that said his Thursday travel was prearranged. He said that plans have been made for his return, which will happen after his business abroad is complete.

Earlier on Friday, prosecutors said that they knew Huang had traveled to Xiamen, but were unaware of his location.

Prosecutors brought 17 people in for questioning after their Thursday searches, and have released six on bail at amounts of between NT$30,000 (US$952) and NT$200,000. The director of Huang’s service office was detained by prosecutors, and others, including Huang’s parents, have been ordered to return for further questioning.