萬國法律事務所

The Taiwan High Court has reversed the District Court’s acquittal of the defendants in the forgery and breach of trust charges brought in connection with the high-profile Sogo ownership battle.

The defendants found guilty in this recent verdict include: Chang Min-Chiang, then chief of the Pacific Group, convicted of breach of trust and false financial statements, and given a 1-year prison sentence (reduced to 6-months because of his advanced age); Chang Chi-Guang and Chang Chi-Min, sons of Chang Min-Chiang, convicted of the same and sentenced to 1.5 years each (reduced to 9 months); and Lee Heng-Lun and Lai Yung-Chi, then directors of Pacific Distribution Investment Co., convicted of forgery and breach of trust and punished with imprisonment respectively for 2 years and 1.5 years. All the above defendants expressed regret over the verdicts and vowed to file appeals.

According to the verdicts, the Changs have embezzled approximately NT$2.6 billion from the Pacific Sogo Department Store to make up the financial deficiency of the Pacific Construction Co. via an interest-free loan in 2000 when the latter had suffered from a slump in the real-estate market. Information regarding the loan was veiled in Pacific Sogo’s financial statement.

Lee Heng-Lun and Lai Yung-Chi have been involved in the other side of the story as they represented the Changs in search of a bailout while finally hurting the Changs’ interests by brokering the deal in 2004 and letting the Far Eastern Group take over Pacific Sogo.