A Taiwanese television journalist has been detained on charges of bribing military officials to leak information to China, a district court said.
The Qiaotou County District Prosecutor's Office announced yesterday that the court had ordered the detention of an unidentified television reporter and five current and retired officers.
The statement did not identify the journalist, using only the surname Lin.
Meanwhile, CTi TV separately announced that its reporter Lin Chen-yu was involved and called for a fair trial.
Prosecutors accuse Lin of paying soldiers amounts ranging from several thousand to tens of thousands of Taiwanese dollars, or from several tens to several hundred euros, in exchange for "providing information to Chinese individuals."
Authorities raided the homes of Lin and nine current and retired military officials on Friday as part of an investigation into violations of Taiwan's national security and corruption laws and the disclosure of classified information.
Lin, according to his Facebook profile, is a political reporter who covers the work of the Taiwanese parliament.
Although Taiwan regularly prosecutes espionage cases within the government and military, allegations against journalists are uncommon.
The "CTi News" portal has become an online channel since the National Communications Commission refused to renew its cable television license in 2020, citing that the company had repeatedly violated the law and faced numerous charges.
The court later overturned the commission's decision, while the legal dispute is still ongoing following appeals.
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