In the case of a visa fraud case involving a retired female military officer investing in an Australian kindergarten, the Kaohsiung High Court ruled that the defendant surnamed Chen lost the case and must pay back NT$2 million.

A retired military officer surnamed Chen invited her schoolgirls to invest and immigrate to Australia, but both women were later deceived. Schematic diagram. (Bloomberg file photo)

A retired female military officer surnamed Ye listened to the introduction of her senior schoolmate surnamed Chen, and invested 3.9 million yuan in an Australian kindergarten to apply for a visa, but was defrauded. Afterwards, the two parties signed a 20-year repayment agreement of 2 million yuan, but Chen failed to fulfill the agreement. In the first trial, Chen had to repay 2 million yuan. Ye won the first instance and detained 2.08 million yuan from Chen. Chen appealed for recovery, but the Kaohsiung High Court ruled against Chen.

The verdict pointed out that the woman surnamed Chen and the woman surnamed Ye are both retired navy soldiers. In 2022, Chen met the nickname "Ellie" through Facebook and mistakenly believed that the other party had an Australian government background and could obtain Australia's 186 employer-sponsored immigration visa by investing in the "TINY STAR" kindergarten in Brisbane. Chen Nu then set up a LINE group to attract Ye Nu to join the game, and Ye Nu began to remit 195,000 Australian dollars (approximately NT$3.906 million) in August 2023.

But after the last payment was remitted, Ye Nu and others discovered that the kindergarten had only 1 Australian dollar in capital and issued 1 share, so it was unable to operate or guarantee a visa. After "Ellie" fled with the money, Ye Nu was angry and sued Chen Nu and her husband for fraud. The prosecutor's investigation found that Ms. Chen herself was also a victim, and had previously paid NT$1.33 million and 950,000 Australian dollars (more than NT$20 million) to "Ellie". The prosecutor of the criminal department ruled that Ms. Chen would not prosecute.

Although she was spared from jail, as early as October 2023, Ye Nv went to Chen's home for negotiations. Chen Nv signed a "debt agreement" at that time, promising to repay Ye Nv a total of 2 million yuan in 20-year installments starting from January 2024. However, Chen Nv did not give her a cent afterwards, and protested that she was coerced into signing by the other party with the Three Character Sutra and that she was also a victim.

After the trial, the Kaohsiung District Court held that Chen Nv had other family members at home when she signed the contract and her freedom was not restricted, so it could hardly be considered coercion. The agreement was a creative settlement contract. Since Chen Nv had breached the contract and failed to pay monthly payments, she had lost the period benefits and the debt was deemed to be fully due. It ruled that Chen Nv must pay Ye Nv 2 million yuan and statutory interest.

Chen Nv refused to accept the appeal, claiming that when Ye Nv and his wife came to the door, they were forced to sign with three words: "I just didn't bring a knife or a gun", "I won't leave until I admit my debt", and the principal offender "Ellie" only paid 880,000 yuan in criminal settlement. It was unfair to ask her to bear 2 million yuan, and asked Ye Nv to return the 2.08 million yuan that was deducted by the false execution.

After the trial, the Kaohsiung High Court found that there were elders present at the signing day, and both parties had proposed to talk to the district chief's office. The agreement was finalized after many revisions. It was difficult to identify coercion, and the agreement was a creative contract. Chen's failure to perform the contract meant she would lose the benefits within the term. Therefore, the appeal was rejected. Ye's deduction for execution was completely legal, and Chen had no right to demand return. The whole case can still be appealed.

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