TAIPEI: A Taiwanese politician known for her close ties with the president and currently on trial charged with taking bribes has been released on bail, court officials said.
Lai Su-ju, a member of the Taipei City Council, went on trial on August 9 and was released on bail of Tw$15m ($500,000) late Friday, said the Taipei district court.
She was charged in July with soliciting a Tw$10m bribe, of which she already received Tw$1m, to help facilitate a massive construction project in the capital, according to prosecutors.
Lai, who had been detained since March, has admitted accepting Tw$1m but claimed it was a political donation rather than a bribe.
The 49-year-old was a rising star in the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) party chaired by President Ma Ying-jeou and formerly served as its spokeswoman. She was also the director of Ma’s office in the KMT.
As a lawyer, she had represented Ma and other top politicians in several high-profile court cases.
She became the second KMT politician with close links to the president to be implicated in corruption scandals.
Taiwan has been rocked by a string of corruption scandals involving top officials in recent years, including ex-president Chen Shui-bian who is serving a 20-year jail term on multiple graft convictions.
AFP
