TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — DPP Taipei City Councilor Chen Yi-chung (陳怡君), appealing a corruption conviction, told the Taiwan High Court on Wednesday that her earlier confession was made under duress, while denying corruption allegations and maintaining her guilty plea to forgery.
Prosecutors allege Chen and her office director, Chang Hui-lin (張惠霖), used Chang’s relatives to fraudulently obtain about NT$3.8 million (US$117,097) in Taipei City Council aide subsidies, per Tai Sounds. Chen is also accused of directing Chang to accept NT$700,000 from Pin Jia Construction Group in exchange for facilitating cooperation with the Taipei City Government.
Although both Chen and Chang pleaded guilty during district court proceedings, Chang withdrew her confession during an appeal hearing on July 15, arguing she admitted guilt only to secure bail, per UDN. Chang maintained that she did not pocket the subsidy money and that all of the funds were used to hire aides.
At Wednesday’s hearing, Chen admitted forging documents related to aide subsidy applications but denied personally benefiting from the funds. She said she had to use her own money to maintain staffing levels. Regarding the NT$700,000 Chang allegedly received from Pin Jia Construction, Chen said she had no knowledge of the arrangement and did not receive any of the money.
Chen argued that she confessed only after being deprived of her freedom for an extended period and being unable to communicate with her family. She said she would have admitted to anything in order to qualify for bail.
The judge informed Chen’s attorneys that she would no longer be eligible for a reduced sentence under her previous plea agreement, and they acknowledged the consequence. The defense then requested records related to Chen’s and Chang’s interrogations and detention, as well as testimony from additional witnesses.
The DPP’s Taipei branch returned Chen’s application to participate in the party’s city council primary in February, citing her suspension from the party, per Liberty Times. Asked at the time whether she would seek reelection, Chen said she had no choice but to continue, per UDN.
In April, DPP Chair Lai Ching-te (賴清德) also directed the party to remove Chen from its Central Evaluation Committee in accordance with party regulations, per Tai Sounds. Although Chen was not invited to a campaign event held by DPP Taipei mayoral candidate Puma Shen (沈伯洋) at Taipei’s Dalong Market, she attended anyway, per SETN.
Local political observers said Chen’s potential candidacy could affect the DPP’s prospects in Taipei’s Zhongshan-Datong electoral district, per UDN. They said the party is projected to have enough support to elect four councilors, but Chen’s participation could cost one of its nominees a seat.
The observers also noted that the defeat of primary candidate Lai Chun-han (賴俊翰), who was backed by DPP Legislator Wang Shih-chien (王世堅), left uncertainty over where Wang’s supporters would ultimately cast their votes. They added that Wang received the highest vote total in the district in the previous election and warned that if he does not actively campaign for the DPP’s city council candidates, the party’s electoral prospects there could weaken.
