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Taiwan prosecutors have charged four former staffers in the ruling Democratic Progressive party with spying for China while they worked in senior positions.
The four include a former aide to Lai Ching-te, when he was vice-president and for a time during his current presidency, and a senior staffer to Joseph Wu, then foreign minister and now national security chief.
They have been accused of sharing state secrets with China over a prolonged period of time, including “important and sensitive diplomatic information” that significantly harmed national security, prosecutors alleged in a statement. One of the accused, who worked for Lai and earlier a Taipei City councillor, is accused of transmitting information to China “via a specific messaging app”. Other alleged offences include money laundering.
Prosecutors are seeking prison sentences ranging from five to more than 18 years, and the confiscation of more than NT$8.3m (£205,000/US$277,000) in illicit gains.
Two defendants confessed but the former staffers to Lai and Wu have denied the allegations against them, prosecutors said.
Separately, local media reported several staffers in the opposition Kuomintang party were under investigation for similar offences.
Taiwan has ramped up its efforts to root out Taiwanese spies working for the Chinese government. In 2024, authorities prosecuted 64 people on such charges, more than the previous two years combined. Many of those prosecuted were retired or serving members of the armed forces.
In March four soldiers, including three who worked in the security team for the president’s office, were sentenced to up to seven years in jail for espionage.
In this week’s case, prosecutors allege the four received payments of between NT$260,000 and NT$660,000 for taking photographs of information with their mobile phones.
China’s government claims Taiwan is a province of China and accuses its democratically elected government of being illegal separatists. It has vowed to annex Taiwan under what it calls “reunification” and has not ruled out using military force. Beijing operates multiple and intensive pressure campaigns of military “greyzone” harassment, cyberwarfare, disinformation, and espionage.
Taiwan and China have spied on each other for decades, but analysts say Taiwan is under greater threat given Beijing’s annexation intentions. Chinese authorities in May announced small bounties for information leading to the capture of 20 Taiwanese nationals they accused of hacking into a Guangzhou tech company, an accusation Taiwan dismissed as false.
