Ko Wen-je says he was improperly interrogated, calls for video release

Taipei, April 17 (CNA) Ex-Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) on Thursday reasserted claims that prosecutors tried to blackmail him, asking for video of his interrogation to be released "so the public can see how I was treated."

Ko, who finished third with 26.46 percent of the vote in Taiwan's 2024 presidential election, appeared in court Thursday for the first time since receiving two days of medical treatment for a kidney stone earlier this month.

The former Taiwan People's Party (TPP) chairman used the hearing at the Taipei District Court to again accuse prosecutor Lin Chun-yen (林俊言) of misconduct.

In his first court appearance on March 20, Ko said that Lin had threatened to release "obscene footage" allegedly found on a seized hard drive if he did not confess during his interrogation.

In response to the allegation, the Taipei District Prosecutors Office had denied it and filed a motion with the Taipei District Court to publicly examine the video of Ko's interrogation and the seized hard drive.

Ko has been detained by prosecutors for over eight months and was indicted in December for bribery, favoritism, embezzlement and breach of public trust offenses.

The charges date back to his second term as mayor of Taipei from 2018 to 2022 and during his run in the 2024 presidential race.

Thursday's hearing was partly held to hear the opinions of Ko and the prosecutors regarding a request by a lawyer of two suspects, Lee Wen-tsung (李文宗) and Lee Wen-chuan (李文娟), for copies of Ko's phone data and hard drive.

It was also held to determine whether evidence used by prosecutors to indict Ko, including testimonies from former Taipei Deputy Mayor Pong Cheng-sheng (彭振聲) and Shao Hsiu-pei (邵琇珮), former executive secretary at the city government's Urban Planning Commission, was admissible.

Pong and Shao told a pre-trial hearing in January that they agreed with the prosecution's portrayal of their role in Ko's alleged taking of bribes from real estate tycoon Sheen Ching-jing (沈慶京).

Prosecutors claim that Sheen paid the money so his Core Pacific Group could obtain a higher floor area ratio for a project in Taipei's Songshan District.

Ko's lawyers, Cheng Shen-yuan (鄭深元) and Hsiao Yi-hung (蕭奕弘), argued that Pong and Shao may have been subject to "improper interrogation" by prosecutors.

During questioning, prosecutors asked Pong if he was "okay with ending up like Yu Wen (余文)," implying that Pong would become a scapegoat unless Pong provided a statement against Ko, Ko's lawyers said at the hearing.

Yu Wen, a former secretary to former President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) during his time as Taipei mayor, was found guilty of graft in 2008 for using fraudulent receipts to claim reimbursements from Ma's special mayoral allowance fund and was sentenced to 14 months. Ma was not found guilty in the case.

Meanwhile, Ko told the court he had not engaged in corruption or embezzled political donations, adding that even after eight months in detention, he still did not know what wrongdoing he was accused of.

Ko also said he had been subject to prolonged and exhausting interrogations, which are illegal in Taiwan, and urged the court to review the video of his questioning on Aug. 30.

In response, Prosecutor Chiang Chang-chih (姜長志) said Ko had been offered breaks during the interrogation but had declined.

The Taipei District Prosecutors' Office is seeking a 28.5-year prison sentence for Ko. Ten other suspects were also indicted in these cases.