High court sentences two for developing CCP-linked organization

Taipei, Sept. 10 (CNA) The Taiwan High Court on Thursday sentenced Taiwanese businessman Cheng Ming-chia (鄭明嘉) to 10 years and six months in prison for developing an organization for the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) united front authorities.

Retired Executive Yuan official Hu Peng-nien (胡鵬年), meanwhile, was sentenced to five years for attempting to do the same.

The ruling can be appealed.

According to the court, from 2021 to 2025 Cheng helped CCP united front officials approach and attempt to recruit targets in Taiwan by providing contact information and arranging meetings in China.

He successfully recruited Hu as a potential operative, while his efforts to recruit another individual surnamed Huang (黃) failed after Huang did not respond.

Treating Cheng's actions as a continuous offense, the court handed down a 10-year and six-month sentence.

Meanwhile, Hu used the same methods from 2021-2024 to try to recruit three people. None responded, leading the court to convict him of attempted development of an organization and hand down a sentence of five years in prison.

The court said Hu admitted to the offenses, while Cheng denied wrongdoing throughout the investigation and trial. It found the evidence against Cheng clear and rejected his defense.

Both defendants, the court said, followed instructions from CCP united front personnel to facilitate the recruitment of new targets.

Hu also transported a communications device supplied by the Chinese authorities into Taiwan and handed it to another person, conduct that the court said significantly aided Beijing's united front efforts.

According to a January indictment by the Taiwan High Prosecutors' Office, Cheng recruited Hu -- then teaching in China -- after becoming involved with CCP-affiliated united front organizations in Guangzhou, and arranged for him to take direction from CCP Taiwan affairs personnel in identifying contacts and recruits in Taiwan.

Prosecutors said Hu targeted current and retired military personnel, political workers, ward chiefs, retired civil servants and defense contractors, seeking military-related information and insights into government and legislative operations, though most recruitment efforts failed.

Cheng and Hu have remained in detention since their arrest following raids launched in September 2025, and both were absent from Thursday's sentencing.