Bribery broke out in the Meishan village chief election in Jia County. The candidate's wife spent 76,000 yuan to buy votes and pledged her money.

A cash vote-buying case broke out in a village chief election in Meishan Township, Chiayi County, and the prosecutor announced that the three main suspects would be detained. (File photo)

Cash bribery broke out in the village chief election in Meishan Township, Chiayi County. In order to get her husband elected, the wife of a village chief candidate named Wu, surnamed Lin, handed over 76,000 yuan to two stakeholders surnamed Jian and Lin, and bought votes from voters at 1,000 yuan each. Prosecutors Yesterday, four defendants and 20 voters were summoned to the case. The prosecutor ordered Mr. Wu to post a bail of NT$20,000, and the other three defendants requested a ban on their appearance. The court ruled that two defendants, surnamed Jian and Lin, should post bail of NT$30,000 each. His wife, surnamed Lin, is still awaiting a detention hearing.

Wu Xinlan, prosecutor of the Chiayi District Prosecutor's Office, directed the Chiayi County Investigation Station of the Investigation Bureau and the Chiayi County Police Department's Zhuqi Branch to form a task force. After collecting evidence, they summoned relevant personnel to the case. Prosecutors determined that in order to ensure that her husband was successfully elected, the wife of a candidate named Wu, surnamed Lin, allegedly handed over 50,000 yuan in cash and 26,000 yuan in cash to Zhuangjiao surnamed Jian and Lin in October this year, and bribed voters at 1,000 yuan per vote.

This case was jointly investigated by Jia County Prosecutor Wu Xinlan and the Jia County Investigation Station and the Chiayi County Police Department’s Zhuqi Branch. Prosecutors pointed out that in order to ensure that her husband, Wu Nan, a village chief candidate in Meishan Township, was successfully elected, in October, his wife surnamed Jian and Lin, surnamed Zhuangjiao, delivered cash of 50,000 yuan and 26,000 yuan respectively, and entrusted them to bribe voters with the right to vote at a cost of 1,000 yuan per vote.

The entire case has been collected by the task force, and there is evidence such as the cash bribes withheld from the case. The prosecutor yesterday summoned 4 defendants and 20 voters to the case. The prosecutor learned that Mr. Wu had posted a bail of NT$20,000, and the other three defendants had requested a ban from the Chiayi District Court. The court ruled that the two defendants, surnamed Jian and Lin, each had to post bail of NT$30,000. The wife surnamed Lin is still awaiting a detention hearing.