On Sunday, the Taiwan High Court ruled that the Taipei District Court did not specifically explain how bail could prevent the defendants in the Kinhwa City case, including Ko Wen-je and three others, from fleeing. The reasons provided were inadequate, leading to the original bail decision being revoked and sent back to the Taipei District Court for further review. The court may summon the defendants for a hearing as soon as that afternoon.
The High Court pointed out that the panel recognized that the defendants, former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je, former Taipei Mayor's Office Director Li Wen-zong, and Taipei City Councilor Ying Xiao-wei, are suspected of crimes under the Anti-Corruption Act for accepting bribes against their official duties. The defendant, Welkin Group Chairman Shen Qjing, is suspected of benefiting others under the same act. The charges against the four are serious, involving crimes with a minimum penalty of over five years in prison, and there is a risk of them fleeing or colluding with co-defendants or witnesses.
The High Court indicated that the original decision lacked necessary explanations regarding the absence of necessity for detention for Ko Wen-je, Ying Xiao-wei, Shen Qjing, and Li Wen-zong. It also did not specify how bail measures would effectively prevent the four from fleeing, rendering the reasons insufficient.
Furthermore, the original ruling did not appropriately clarify whether the bail amounts set were proportional to the legal interests harmed and the illicit gains obtained by the defendants, and whether these amounts would be sufficiently binding.
The High Court noted that defendant Ying Xiao-wei, in addition to holding a 'Republic of China' passport, also possesses another foreign passport, which was a critical fact regarding the risk of flight that the original ruling failed to consider appropriately. Consequently, the prosecutor's appeal was deemed justified, leading to the revocation of the original verdict and remanding it to the original trial court.
The Taipei District Prosecutor's Office had indicted and arraigned the detained defendants Ko Wen-je and others in the Kinhwa City and political donation cases. On the 27th, the Taipei District Court ruled that Ko Wen-je be released on bail of NT$30 million (approximately RM4.08 million), Li Wen-zong on NT$8 million (including NT$2 million during the investigation), Shen Qjing on NT$40 million, and Ying Xiao-wei on NT$15 million. All four were restricted in residence, banned from leaving the country and the sea, and prohibited from contacting co-defendants or witnesses except for daily life and work necessities.
The Taipei District Prosecutor's Office was dissatisfied with the court’s bail decision for Ko Wen-je, Ying Xiao-wei, Shen Qjing, and Li Wen-zong, and filed an appeal.