Taipei prosecutors have assigned Wu Tzu-chia's complaint to a specialized tax team. The allegations are unproven, and Cheng Chao-fang denies them and has filed a counter-complaint.
United Daily News reported that on Oct. 22 the Taipei District Prosecutors Office assigned a complaint filed by Wu Tzu-chia (吳子嘉), chairman of Meili Island Electronic News, to a specialized tax team, registering it under a referral (分他) case number. The complaint was filed on Sept. 2 and targets Cheng Chao-fang (鄭朝方), the Democratic Progressive Party's candidate for Hsinchu County magistrate, among others. Prosecutors have not announced any verified finding of wrongdoing.
광고 문의 · 300×250According to the complaint, Wu alleges that Cheng, a former Hsinchu County magistrate and others evaded tax through a land transaction. He asks prosecutors to examine possible violations of the Tax Collection Act and of the provision on causing public officials to record false information. These are the complainant's claims only.
The deal structure alleged by the complainant
The complaint concerns about 104 parcels in Zhudong, including Lot 531 of Shangguan Section, mostly mountain-slope conservation land zoned for farming and livestock, which Wu says generated large profits after a change in land-use category. Wu argues that of the roughly NT$420 million the landowner received from selling to a corporate group chairman, the 44 percent share under a 2015 partition agreement, about NT$180 million, was development profit.
Wu says registered actual-price records show similar land at about NT$89,000 per ping plus a NT$20 million right-of-way fee, more than 40 times below nearby prices. He puts the evaded tax at more than NT$115.24 million, estimated from surrounding land prices. That figure is the complainant's own calculation and has not been verified by prosecutors or tax authorities.
Cheng's response and the election context
Cheng denies the allegations as false and has countersued Wu for intent to prevent someone from being elected. On the same day, the Hsinchu District Prosecutors Office searched Wu's office and residence in connection with leaflets attacking Cheng, and Wu was released after questioning.
With local elections on Nov. 28, the complaint and countersuit have become a political contest. Responses from other people named were not included in the report, and it is unknown whether the investigation will lead to an indictment. This paper describes the allegations against individuals only as being at the complaint and investigation stage.