Military court seeks life sentence for ex-army general
ROC Central News Agency
2011/05/20 20:33:26
Taipei, May 20 (CNA) A military court on Friday asked for life imprisonment for an army general who has confessed to spying for China.
Military prosecutors said Lo Hsien-che, a one-star general, started collecting information for China in 2004, for which he accepted payment from mainland Chinese officials.
The prosecutors charged Lo a day earlier with engaging in espionage, handing military secrets to the enemy and accepting bribes for behavior that was in violation of his duties.
They said that his deeds damaged national interests and safety and dented the honor of the military, and that he should therefore be given the most severe punishment possible -- the death penalty.
However, they also said that as Lo has confessed to all his misdeeds and has handed over all his illegal gains, they decided to to ask only for a life sentence in line with regulations.
Lo has been detained since late January following searches of his residence and office. Prior to his arrest, he was head of communications and electronic information at Army Command Headquarters.
The 51-year-old officer reportedly had access to a Taiwan-U.S. military cooperation project known as Po Sheng, which involved communication links between the armed forces of the two countries.
According to unconfirmed reports shortly after his arrest, Lo's act of betrayal might affect Taiwan-U.S. future military intelligence cooperation and even Taiwan's procurement of weapons from the U.S.
Lo is believed to be the highest-ranking Taiwanese officer to be caught spying for China in nearly five decades. He is thought to have been recruited by Chinese agents in 2004 when he was posted in Thailand from 2002-2005. (By Hsieh Chia-chen and Lilian Wu) ENDITEM/J
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