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NPM staff not guilty
LEGACY: The court said there were many mistakes
in the prosecution¡¦s case, which must have weighed heavily on the former
director of the museum
By Chang Wen-chuan and Lin Chun-hung / Staff Reporters
Five former National Palace Museum (NPM) officials accused of embezzlement by
prosecutors in a case concerning the establishment of the museum¡¦s branch in
Chiayi were found not guilty by the Shihlin District Court on Thursday.
Charges were brought against former NPM director Shih Shouh-chien (¥Û¦uÁ¾), former
NPM deputy director Lin Po-ting (ªL¬f«F), former NPM executive secretary Chang
Hui-ching (±i¿·µ×) as well as the museum¡¦s unofficial consultants Bee Kuang-chien
(²¦¥ú°·) and Wang Chun-hsiung (¤ý«T¶¯) in 2007 after it was alleged they changed the
prices for the public bidding, pre-selected certain companies and leaked the
estimated cost of construction.
In 2007, the Shihlin District Prosecutors¡¦ Office asked the court to sentence
Shih to 15 years in prison on corruption charge for allegedly inflating the cost
of the renovation project from NT$385 million (US$12 million) to NT$600 million.
In 2009, the prosecution took Shih into custody on allegations that he helped
San Gung Company secure a NT$840,000 construction service fee and helped Lend
Lease Company receive the bid. Shih was indicted in August of the same year.
During the investigation of the alleged embezzlement, the prosecution took Shih,
who is well-known in both the academic and arts sectors, into custody four times
within 47 days and pushed for a retrial, the court said, adding that Shih was
finally released on bail of NT$1.2 million in 2009.
Although the court had found Shih innocent of the charges, the case must have
weighed heavily on him, the court said.
According to the Shihlin District Court, there were many mistakes in the
prosecution¡¦s case, such as allegations that Shih and others decided that Lend
Lease would be awarded the bid because the company appeared in the ¡§possible
research section¡¨ of the Chiayi branch¡¦s public bidding project plan.
If Lend Lease had been pre--selected to win the bid, why would it be included in
the plans sent to the Executive Yuan, giving themselves away, the court asked.
As to the prosecution¡¦s allegations that fees awarded to San Gung Co for
participating in the bid amounted to illegal participation, the court felt the
NT$840,000 in construction fees did not meet the NT$1 million legal standard of
requiring publicized bidding, and as there was no illegality regarding the price
negotiation and contract signing, the court dismissed the charges.
The court added that the prosecution was unable to prove that Shih and others
were able to influence the attitudes of the selection committee.
By only using the testimony of a consultant surnamed Yeh (¸) from a competing
company, who also doubled as a selection committee member, and not bothering to
investigate the testimony of other committee members or the testimony of Shih
and the others accused of embezzlement showed favoritism, the court said.
The Shihlin District Prosecutors¡¦ Office said it would wait until receipt of the
ruling before deciding whether to lodge an appeal.
Additional reporting by Huang Yi-ching and Chao Ching-yu
Translated by Jake Chung, Staff Writer
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