Two Taiwanese given suspended sentences in Chinese recruiting case

Taipei, May 20 (CNA) Two Taiwanese men have been given suspended sentences after being found guilty of illegally recruiting personnel for a Chinese high-tech company in Taiwan, the Hsinchu District Court said Monday.

A man surnamed Huang (黃) received a jail term of six months, suspended for two years, and was ordered to pay NT$360,000 (US$11,180), while another man identified as Hsu (許) was sentenced to three months in jail, suspended for two years, and ordered to pay NT$200,000.

The court found the two guilty of violating the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area, which stipulates that Chinese companies or "third-area" subsidiaries are not allowed to "engage in business activities" unless permitted by the competent authorities.

Among the activities they cannot engage in under the provision are sales, R&D and recruiting activities.

The sentences for the two men can be appealed.

According to the ruling issued on May 10 by the court, Huang was approached by a Chinese national surnamed Wu (吳) to serve as general manager and vice president of two affiliates in Taiwan of Shanghai-based Mindmotion Microelectronics, a company managed by Wu.

The court found that Wu and Huang teamed up to establish the two companies in Zhubei City in 2017 and recruited R&D personnel for micro-processing units, with the help of a U.S. national who was not aware that China-based companies were not allowed to engage in such actions.

Because Huang knew that the two Mindmotion affiliates could be investigated by law enforcement authorities for illegally operating in Taiwan, he quit his job in one of them in 2022, a position that was later filled by Hsu, while dissolving the other company, it said.

Wu, meanwhile, has been put on the Hsinch District Prosecutors Office wanted list.