Taiwanese prosecutors have indicted a retired navy sergeant under the National Security Act, alleging he tried to recruit a retired major general and a coast guard official to spy for China. Both men refused, and investigators found he had been recruited by China in 2008 to develop an organization in Taiwan for gathering secrets. The indictment was filed by the Tainan branch of the High Prosecutors' Office, which, the Liberty Times reported, also brought charges under the Anti-Corruption Act.
Who was directing him? He took instructions from Chinese individuals using the aliases Li Wen-hsueh (李文學) and Chang Cheng-cheng (張成城), the Liberty Times reported. He offered US$100,000 in intelligence fees as he tried to recruit the retired general and the coast guard official, and a junior high school classmates' group became a tool for the infiltration.
Whom did he approach? In early 2021 he approached a retired major general surnamed Wang, arranged for him to contact Chinese Communist Party officials and personally handed him NT$42,100, the Liberty Times reported. The goal was military operational intelligence and secrets of cooperation agreements the Ocean Affairs Council signed with the United States, but Wang refused. The sergeant then turned to a junior high school classmate serving as a section chief at the Coast Guard Administration, offering payment per item or, for long-term cooperation, the equivalent of a monthly salary, PTS reported.
How did officials respond? Chang Yu-ning (張友寧), director of the Coast Guard Administration's civil service ethics office, told PTS the agency referred the case to investigators after receiving intelligence reports, and that the colleague handed over no material and none of its official secrets leaked. The coast guard said it has held 242 legal-education and awareness sessions since 2025 and rewards people who report national-security cases. The Veterans Affairs Council said it would use regular forums and gatherings to strengthen legal and national-security awareness among retired service members.
What did analysts say? Chou Yu-ping (周宇平), a former planning division chief at the Missile Command, told PTS that such criminal organizations building a network first look for people they know, making relatives and friends in the public sector or the military prime targets. Experts said the government should tighten confidentiality in the public sector, make staff aware of the criminal penalties for leaks and build security awareness among the public, because Chinese infiltration also works through the private sector.
