The Taiwan High Court is ruling that former President Chen Shui Bian cannot
be prosecuted for money laundering.

In doing so, the court upheld a district court's ruling, which cited the
expiration of the statute of limitations.

That's in connection to the appointment of former Taipei 101 chairman Diana
Chen.

The court found that the statute of limitations expired in 2022, and
dismissed prosecutors' appeal against the Taipei court's decision to exempt
Chen from prosecution...

however, the ruling can still be appealed.

The case stemmed from a bribery case in which Chen and his wife were
convicted of accepting 10 million NT from Diana Chen in exchange for helping
her secure the chairmanship position.

Both were sentenced to eight years in prison, with the verdict finalized
years ago.

During the proceedings for that case, the High Court found that the former
president was also an accomplice to money laundering.

The Taipei District Court suspended the trial in 2015 after doctors concluded
that the former president, who suffers from multiple health issues, was unfit
to appear in court.

Chen, who served as president from 2000 to 2008, was sentenced to 20 years in
prison for multiple corruption cases and released on medical parole in 2015.

(AH-CNA)