Former Taiwanese military colonel sentenced to 20 years in prison for espionage on behalf of China

A Taiwan air force colonel has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for operating a military spy ring on behalf of China. Liu Sheng-shu, who retired from the air force, was found guilty of recruiting active-duty officers to pass along classified military information to Beijing. Five other officers, including members from the navy and air force, were also sentenced to jail terms ranging from six months to 20 years for their involvement in the spy ring. Reports suggest that Liu was recruited during a business trip to China in 2013 and he later managed a network of informants, compensating them through shell companies. Prosecutors revealed that he was paid for providing military intelligence, such as details on aircraft and warship capabilities. In addition to the prison sentence, authorities seized NT$16.7m (approximately $514,000) as illegal earnings. Liu and six other officers were charged by the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office's Kaohsiung branch in January, with one of the accused being acquitted. In recent years, numerous former senior Taiwan military officials have been accused of assisting Chinese intelligence. In a similar case, a retired air force major general was found guilty in January of accepting gifts and travel expenses from a Hong Kong businessman acting on behalf of Beijing. However, his sentence was suspended due to his remorse and lack of prior criminal record.