Huang Zijiao was sentenced to 8 months in prison and fined NT$100,000 (about RM12,400) in the first trial for possessing indecent videos of underage girls. After appealing in the second trial and settling with 37 victims, he was re-sentenced under the Personal Data Protection Act last November 25th to 1 year and 6 months in prison, suspended for 4 years. He is also required to provide 180 hours of community service to public welfare organizations or groups and attend 3 rule-of-law education sessions. After another appeal, the Supreme Court yesterday rejected the appeal and finalized the case, exempting Huang Zijiao from imprisonment. The whistleblower in the case, Zofia, lamented that "the law protects bad people," and admitted, "It would be a lie to say I am not afraid."
Huang Zijiao was accused of using photoshoots as a pretext to forcibly kiss underage girls and take revealing photos. During last August's '#MeToo' movement surge, Huang Zijiao was accused of sexual assault by a victim. Prosecutors and police later found a large amount of images of underage girls at his residence, and discovered that the indecent videos came from the website 'Creative Private Studio Forum'.
The Taipei District Court judged that there were 35 victims and 2,259 files of indecent videos. Huang Zijiao was initially sentenced to 8 months of imprisonment and fined NT$100,000 (about RM12,400). For 12 victims whose identities remain unknown and who had not reported the crime, their cases were handed back to prosecutors for further investigation. This April 22nd, for those 12 victims, the Taipei District Prosecutor's Office transferred the case to the High Court and added the crime of violating the Personal Data Protection Act.
Sentenced to 1.5 Years with 4-Year Probation
The High Court ruled that for intentionally, as an adult, illegally collecting and processing minors' personal data in a non-governmental capacity under the Personal Data Protection Act, Huang Zijiao is sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison, suspended for 4 years, with probation supervision during the suspension, 180 hours of community service, and three legal education sessions.
Zofia Promises Not to Do Anything Foolish
After the news broke, whistleblower Zofia posted her thoughts on Instagram Stories with white text on a black background and put forward two appeals: First, she called for more attention to children's privacy and reminded parents to be aware of their children's social activity. She lamented, "Laws protect bad people, and mistakes are always redeemable."
Second, Zofia admitted, "It would be a lie to say I am not afraid. Even though I'm not in Taiwan, I still lock my doors every day." She shared that her neighbor is a police officer and there is a security camera at her door. When she returns to Taiwan to visit family, she will be even more cautious and avoid exposing her whereabouts. She assured everyone concerned for her: "I am very happy and will not do anything foolish. My child is still very young and I want to see them grow up."
Source: Niusnews