Ex-president’s house, office raided again

They also won court approval to detain Chen Cheng-hui, the former president’s longtime accountant, as a defendant in the scams.

She became the first defendant ever detained in the series of high-profile scams allegedly involving the former first family and the former head of state’s close aides following an investigation of more than two years.

The search marked the second time prosecutors have raided Chen’s residence in two months, following an unprecedented move on Aug. 16.

But prosecutors also searched Chen’s office in Taipei for the first time. The office, manned by several aides, has been used by the former president as a power base for political activities after leaving public office on May 20. The latest search was an expanded operation from the previous one by prosecutors on the special criminal investigation task force under the Supreme Prosecutor Office.

They led more than 150 people to search 27 different places in the Greater Taipei area and northeastern Yilan County.

The extensive search covered the residence of Chen’s daughter, the former first family’s safe deposit boxes stored at banks, the residences of former first lady Wu Shu-chen’s relatives and friends, plus residences of employees of a construction firm that allegedly wired money into overseas bank accounts of the Chen family.

The former first lady was exonerated for allegedly accepting bribes in the form of vouchers from a department store chain and possible insider stock trading in the past.

But she and several of Chen’s aides were indicted with corruption and forgery in November 2006 for using receipts provided by others to claim reimbursements totaling NT$14.8 million from the president’s public fund — “state affairs fee” — between July 2002 and March 2006.

However, she declined to attend court hearings after being served with 17 summons, citing ill health.

Ex-president Chen, who had immunity from prosecution while in office, was probed for his role in the “state affairs fund” case soon after he stepped down from the presidency on May 20.

The latest house searches involve a separately alleged money-laundering case against him and his family.

Chen Shui-bian and Wu, their son Chen Chih-chung and daughter-in-law Huang Jui-ching, and Wu’s elder brother Wu Ching-mao have been named suspects in the money-laundering case and barred from leaving the country.

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