Taiwan coast guard officer allegedly took Tesla as bribe, bought S$1.31 million luxury mansion & wife spent S$41,000 in 1 day at department store

A major in the Taiwan Coast Guard implicated in a bribery scandal was found to have bought an NT$32 million (S$1.31 million) luxury mansion, with his wife routinely going on spending sprees for branded goods and paying in cash.

Lin Yu Chin, 39, an investigator in the coast guard's Investigation and Prevention Division, was accused of colluding with an illicit cigarette smuggling syndicate to undermine its competitors, and leaking intelligence on crackdown operations by authorities.

He is also alleged to have fronted homeless individuals as "scapegoats" for the smugglers, so as to fraudulently claim rewards for their arrests.

Changhua district prosecutors are seeking a 15-year sentence for Lin on bribery charges, according to Taiwanese media.

Denied that his Tesla was a gift

Prosecutors accused Lin of receiving a white model Y Tesla worth over NT$2 million (S$82,495) in 2022 as a bribe from cigarette syndicate boss Huang Chia-Yu, also known as "Brother Bing".

When questioned in court, Lin denied the car was a gift, claiming he purchased it himself, ET Today reported.

He also provided documents to support his claims that he had taken out a bank loan and that his wife wired him a substantial down payment.

Lin's wife, testifying as a witness, also claimed they "had a lot of cash" from selling jewellery, borrowing from family and rental income.

Witnesses said it was a "gift" from syndicate boss

However, two car accessory store owners, who were summoned by Lin as witnesses, contradicted his claims, Taiwanese news site Mirror Media reported.

One testified that Huang had paid NT$65,000 (S$2,681) for window film for the car, and specified that the car was "meant to be a gift".

Another said that Huang arranged for the car to be sent to his workshop for window tinting, saying that "this car is to be given away, give me the regular rate".

Huang is still at large overseas.

The Tesla has been classified as the proceeds of crime and will be put up for auction.

Spent more than their income

Prosecutors estimated Lin and his wife's income was less than NT$10 million (S$412,479) from 2020 to 2023, but noted that their credit card spending in that period exceeded NT$7 million (S$288,735), according to ET Today.

They pointed out that after deducting car and mortgage payments, the couple would only have a maximum of NT$970,000 (S$40,010) to their name.

Despite this, the couple also purchased a luxury mansion worth NT$32 million (S$1.31 million), on top of another property worth NT$10 million (S$412,479) previously bought in 2018.

Lin's wife once spent over NT$1 million (S$41,247) in a single day at a Taichung department store, prosecutors added.

She would reportedly spend extravagantly on branded goods like Hermes and Chanel luxury bags, and pay for the purchases in cash.

Investigated after intelligence leak

In March, Lin came under investigation after district prosecutors looked into a case involving an intelligence leak during a crackdown on illicit cigarette sales, Liberty Times Net reported.

Lin was suspected of having colluded with Huang from 2019 to leak information and operational plans in exchange for bribes.

Lin also allegedly used the police database to make queries about specific vehicles so as to help Huang evade investigation, said prosecutors.

In addition, Lin was personally rewarded with NT$3.32 million for "cracking" at least four cases, which he did by working with smugglers to find homeless or poor individuals to "front" the crimes, the prosecution alleged.

The individuals however allegedly had no assets to speak of.

Lin was one of six individuals charged in July for corruption and leaking information.

During recent court proceedings, Lin requested bail, citing his father's cancer and his son's young age.

However, this was denied by the court.

The judge ruled that Lin should remain in detention given the severity of the offences, and the high risk of him communicating with an accomplice if released.

Top image from ET Today/Mirror Media