District court again grants bail to ex-Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je

Taipei, Sept. 15 (CNA) The Taipei District Court on Monday again approved bail for former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and Taipei City Councilor Ying Hsiao-wei (應曉薇), keeping their original bails of NT$70 million (US$2.32 million) and NT$30 million, respectively.

The ruling follows a decision by the Taiwan High Court on Friday to overturn an earlier district court order granting bail to Ko and Ying on the conditions that they wear an electronic tracking device and remain in Taiwan.

They were also barred from contacting, harassing, threatening or asking for information from other defendants or witnesses in the case.

Ko, who had been detained incommunicado since September in 2024 until Sept. 8 when he was released on NT$70 million bail, maintains that he is innocent and that the corruption charges against him are politically motivated.

Ying, who has been indicted in connection with Ko's case, was released on NT$30 million bail on Sept. 5.

The Taipei District Prosecutors Office appealed the bail orders on Sept. 9, arguing that key witnesses had not yet completed testimony and that Ko had contacted witnesses Chen Chih-han (陳智菡) and Chen You-cheng (陳宥丞) after posting bail on Sept. 8.

The High Court found the prosecutors' appeal justified, revoked the earlier bail ruling, and returned the case for a new decision.

Ko and Ying are currently on trial for corruption and other offenses, in what is known locally as the "Core Pacific City case."

Ko faces a potential sentence of 28.5 years for allegedly accepting bribes of NT$17.1 million in a property development deal during his tenure as Taipei mayor and embezzling political donations during his 2024 presidential campaign as leader of the Taiwan People's Party.