Former Taipei Mayor Ko listed as suspect in alleged corruption case

Taipei, May 2 (CNA) Former Taipei Mayor and Taiwan People's Party Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) has been listed as a suspect in alleged corruption cases involving Taipei's Core Pacific City mall redevelopment project and the Beitou Shilin Technology Park project, the Taipei District Prosecutors Office said on Thursday.

According to prosecutors, investigations have begun into suspected violations of the Anti-Corruption Act, with Ko being listed as a suspect, after complaints were received from the public about the two projects.

The land lease auctions for Taipei's Beitou Shilin Technology Park T17 and T18 areas recently attracted public attention and issues such as rental rates and suspected falsification of meeting records have been questioned by several local councilors.

In addition, during Ko's tenure as mayor, there was a significant increase in the floor area ratio (FAR) of Core Pacific City, leading to accusations of favoritism toward developers.

FAR is the measurement of a building's floor area in relation to the size of the area of land on which it is located.

The prosecutors said that the case is being handled by prosecutor Lin Chun-yen (林俊言) from the special investigation division for combating corruption and organized crime. Lin will oversee the collection of evidence and review the case with assistance from the Ministry of Justice Agency Against Corruption.