Supreme Court upholds sentence for ex-Air Force officer in China leak case

Taipei, May 22 (CNA) The Supreme Court has upheld a seven-year jail sentence for an ex-Air Force officer found guilty of leaking military documents to China in exchange for money.

The court rejected an appeal by Hsu Chan-cheng (許展誠) on Thursday, saying the lower court made no errors in its findings and that the sentence was appropriate, making the ruling final and unappealable.

While still on active duty, Hsu was recruited in 2021 by retired Air Force Major Shih Chun-cheng (史濬程), who had been co-opted by Chinese intelligence after leaving the military in 2008. Shih promised payments in exchange for sensitive military information.

Over nearly four years, Hsu provided internal Air Force training materials, including documents detailing fighter jets armed with Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missiles and operational responses to Chinese military flights around Taiwan.

Hsu was found to have received NT$226,000 (US$7,175) in total, a small portion of the NT$2.1 million payments Shih collected from Chinese handlers.

The Taichung branch of the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office launched an investigation in August 2024, conducting searches and taking Shih and Hsu into custody. Both men were held incommunicado following court approval.

The two admitted the offenses during questioning, and prosecutors later indicted them on charges including violations of the Anti-Corruption Act and the National Security Act.

In Hsu's case, the Taichung District Court in August 2025 sentenced him to seven years and four months in prison and stripped him of civil rights for five years.

After an appeal, the Taichung branch of the Taiwan High Court in February overturned the original ruling and lowered the sentence to seven years in prison, while upholding the five-year deprivation of civil rights.

According to the high court at the time, Hsu's sentence was reduced by four months due to his confession and the return of illicit gains.

However, a second appeal against the ruling was unsuccessful.

In Shih's case, he was ordered to serve a combined sentence of three years and two months for two National Security Act offenses, with the rulings finalized in August 2025 and April this year.