Settlements in child sex images case announced on eve of appeal ruling

Taipei, Nov. 24 (CNA) On the eve of a ruling in his child sex videos case, former television host Mickey Huang (黃子佼) announced through his attorney Monday that he had reached settlements with all of the victims in the case, potentially helping his cause Tuesday.

On Dec. 3, 2024, the Taipei District Court sentenced Huang to eight months in prison and fined him NT$100,000 (US$3,181) for possession of a large collection of sexually explicit images involving minors and promoting a market for those images.

According to a statement issued by the Taipei District Court at the time, Huang joined an online forum called "Chuangyi Sifang" (or Creative Private House, 創意私房) on Feb. 12, 2014, and used the forum to purchase sexually explicit videos and images.

An investigation found that Huang eventually owned 2,259 sexual image files that involved at least 35 minors.

Huang appealed the sentence to the Taiwan High Court, where a ruling is set to be announced Tuesday.

It was unclear if the settlements would affect the High Court's findings.

Asked about the potential impact of the settlements on the case by CNA, the High Court said it could not comment publicly because the issue was related to the outcome of Tuesday's ruling.

A well-known lawyer with ties to the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Huang Di-ying (黃帝穎), said Monday in an interview with NowNews, however, that the settlement announcement was likely directed at having the sentence reduced or suspended.

Huang cited two articles in the Criminal Code (Article 59 and 74) that allow for reduced or suspended sentences if there are forgivable circumstances or compensation was paid to the victims in the case.

In Huang's statement released Monday through his attorney on having settled with all of the victims involved in the case, he expressed remorse.

"I have come to learn that behind every sexual visual material involving minors, there is a graphic story that would cause lifelong trauma to the underage individuals," Huang said in the statement.

"Without the downloads, there would be no supply. I am sincerely remorseful of the action I took all those years ago and pray for the forgiveness of every victim."

The statement also said that because the case involved minors, Huang had no way of contacting the victims directly, as their personal information was securely protected.

Instead, Huang was only able to contact the victims through the assistance of the courts, the statement said.

It stated that the victims understood Huang was not involved in the making of pornographic materials or creation of the false pretenses that got the victims into the situation in the first place.

The victims also understood that Huang downloaded the graphic materials before Feb. 17, 2023, when Article 39 of Taiwan's Child and Youth Sexual Exploitation Prevention Act had not yet been amended to strictly regulate the production, circulation, and procurement of child sex images, the statement said.

It also claimed that Huang was able to get the forgiveness of the victims.

In the statement, Huang said his "stupid curiosity" put him on the wrong side of the law and caused him to lose his career and family, and he promised he will take the lesson to heart and work to be a better person.