TPP's Ko Wen-je Has Hours to Pay US$2.1M Bail Sum

TaiwanPlus News

Former Taipei mayor and founder of the Taiwan People's Party Ko Wen-je has hours to pay a revised US$2.1M in bail after the High Court ruled he and other high-profile defendants granted bail posed a collusion and flight risk.

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00:00Former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je's freedom is on the line again, just days after he was

00:06released on bail following four months in detention, indicted for corruption and embezzling

00:13political funds when he was head of the Taiwanese capital.

00:17Now the high court has sided with prosecutors, ruling to increase his bail sum from around

00:23900,000 U.S. dollars to over 2.1 million, and Ko was given less than 24 hours to pay

00:31the difference, facing renewed detention if he doesn't meet the 5 p.m. local time deadline

00:37on the 30th of December.

00:44Like Ko, the other high-profile defendants involved in the case, namely Taipei City Councilor

00:50Angela Ying, real estate tycoon Shen Qing-jing, and Ko's former mayoral office head Li Wen-zong,

00:57have had their bail sums hiked up, and now they all must also wear trackers.

01:04Moments after the ruling, Ko was seen leaving his home for his lawyer's office.

01:11With just hours to make the payment, there is speculation that the doctor-turned-politician

01:16may have to sell or use his properties as collateral.

01:20Standing by their leader, members of Ko's Taiwan People's Party have begun raising funds

01:25among themselves, seeing the case against Ko as politically motivated.

01:31Today, for the Taiwanese people, there is only one thing that is important, Chairman

01:37Ko.

01:38Ko has offered to resign as party leader, despite having founded this third-party force

01:44that has challenged the country's long-standing two-party system.

01:49Meanwhile, prosecutors say Ko's case is being handled in line with expectations, handing

01:55down one of the country's highest bail sums among politicians, which they say match the

02:00damage Ko has allegedly caused.

02:03Andy Hsu and Joyce Sun for Taiwan Plus.

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