KMT Keelung branch chairman detained in recall probe

Taipei, May 9 (CNA) The Taiwan Keelung District Court on Thursday night ordered that Kuomintang (KMT) Keelung branch chairman Wu Kuo-sheng (吳國勝) be detained and held incommunicado.

After questioning Wu, the court determined he was strongly suspected of misusing personal data and committing forgery.

The court said Wu posed a risk of collusion and evidence destruction, noting that accomplices identified him as the main offender and had deliberately used communication apps that made evidence collection difficult. It therefore granted the prosecution's request for detention.

During questioning, Wu admitted to taking part in recall efforts against ruling Democratic Progressive Party city councilors Cheng Wen-ting (鄭文婷) and Jiho Tiun (張之豪) of Keelung's Ren'ai and Anle districts.

Although Wu denied the charges brought by prosecutors, his statements were contradictory and failed to reasonably explain the irregularities in the recall petitions, the court said.

Prosecutors raided the KMT Keelung branch Thursday, taking Wu and the branch's deputy secretary, Han Chi-yuan (韓吉元), in for questioning. Han was later released on NT$100,000 (US$3,297) bail.

Prosecutors cross-examined conversations in a WeChat group with the defendants' statements to determine whether Wu was aware of the forgeries.

The group included Wu, Han and Chang Yuan-hsiang (張淵翔), former director of the Keelung City government's Department of Civil Affairs, who was detained Tuesday on the same charges.

Before the Thursday raid, the KMT branch office was searched on April 28, and Chi Wen-chuan (紀文荃) and Yu Cheng-yi (游正義), the chief petitioners in the recall campaign against Cheng and Tiun, were brought in for investigation.

Cheng was later released on a NT$150,000 bail, and Chi was detained and held incommunicado.