Ex-colonel gets 11 years in China spy case; leak charges remanded

Taipei, Jan. 30 (CNA) The Supreme Court on Thursday finalized an 11-year prison sentence for an ex-Air Force colonel who recruited spies for China while on active duty, but remanded charges involving the leak of military secrets back to a lower court.

Former Colonel Chang Ming-che (張銘哲) served as a department director at the Air Force Academy before being discharged for his involvement in an espionage case -- first exposed by the media last June -- according to the Ministry of National Defense (MND) at the time.

According to Taichung prosecutors, Chang received NT$1.34 million (US$42,608) from his handlers between 2019 and 2023, with some monthly payments reaching NT$65,000, for his role in providing intelligence and recruiting military spies for China.

Chang was recruited by three Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) officers attached to the Guangdong Provincial Government's overseas office in Bali, Indonesia, in 2019, and received a US$10,000 signing bonus, prosecutors said.

The meeting was arranged by Chung Shun-he (鍾順和), a China-based Taiwanese businessman who died while the case was pending before the Taichung branch of the Taiwan High Court last year, prosecutors added.

Prosecutors indicted Chang, Chung, and a then-active-duty military officer, surnamed Yeh (葉), who they found had also been recruited by Chung to work for China following a 2023 meeting with PLA officers in Singapore.

Last September, the Taiwan High Court handed Chang a combined 16-year prison term for multiple offenses, including developing a network for an external entity, espionage and the collection of military secrets.

In the same ruling, the court dismissed all charges against Chung due to his death and acquitted Yeh, citing insufficient evidence.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court remanded two other charges of Chang -- for which he received four and three-year prison terms, respectively -- to the lower court for a retrial.

The grounds for the Supreme Court's ruling have not been made public.

MND notes last June that the case was uncovered through internal leads and subsequently referred to the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office for investigation.