An old man in Taipei City bribed an engineer in order to avoid fines. The prosecutor suspended the prosecution and paid NT$80,000 to the public treasury.

After the prosecutor's investigation, considering that Yang Weng admitted the crime and had no previous convictions, he was given a suspended prosecution, but he had to pay 80,000 yuan to the public treasury. (Photo by reporter Wu Shengru)

A 72-year-old man surnamed Yang in Taipei City received a time-limited improvement notice from the Construction Management Office on July 24 last year because he illegally installed doors in the stairwells on the third and fourth floors of his residence. After Yang Weng dismantled the door leaf, he sent it to the organizer along with photos, a statement of opinion and a bribe of 3,000 yuan in exchange for exemption from fines. The handler found cash when receiving the goods and reported it to the Political Style Office for investigation. After the prosecutor's investigation, considering that Yang Weng admitted the crime and had no previous convictions, he was given a suspended prosecution, but he had to pay 80,000 yuan to the public treasury.

An investigation by the prosecutor found that after receiving the modification restriction notice, the old man surnamed Yang dismantled the door leaf within the specified period, but he would face a fine of not less than 40,000 yuan but not more than 200,000 yuan. When Yang Weng sent back the demolition photos and statement of opinions, he stuffed 3,000 yuan in cash into the letter in exchange for exemption from fines.

Please read on...

After the engineer surnamed Zhang opened the envelope, he found that it actually contained 3,000 yuan in cash. He reported it to the Taipei City Construction Management and Engineering Office's Political Affairs Office and transferred it to the Independent Commission Against Corruption for investigation.

When questioned by the integrity officer, Yang Weng admitted that he would send cash to the organizer in order to avoid paying the fine, hoping to exchange for being exempted from the fine. The Independent Commission Against Corruption determined that Yang Weng's behavior involved the crime of bribery in the Corruption Crime Ordinance, and transferred it to the Taipei District Prosecutor's Office for investigation in accordance with the law.

After the investigation, the prosecutor considered that Yang Weng had confessed to the crime and was deeply remorseful. The harm of the crime was not serious and there was no previous record. Therefore, he was given a deferred prosecution. The deferred prosecution period is 2 years. Within 6 months after the punishment is determined, he must pay 80,000 yuan to the public treasury.