Military police wait to change guards by an entrance to the Presidential Palace in Taipei on Jan. 10, 2024. ALASTAIR PIKE/AFP via Getty Images
Taiwanese prosecutors have indicted four people on charges of helping Chinese contacts obtain classified military secrets for payment.
The Taiwan High Prosecutors Office announced the charges on Oct. 19. Two former service members allegedly leaked secrets and two others helped channel and conceal payments.
The defendants include a former military police serviceman surnamed Lee, a former air force servicewoman surnamed Sen, a Coast Guard employee surnamed Tsai, and a retired serviceman surnamed Yu.
Prosecutors allege that Lee and Sen collected and handed over multiple pieces of military classified information to Chinese contacts while they were still serving in the armed forces. Both have since left the military.
According to the indictment, Lee allegedly engaged in the activities from March or April 2024 through August 2025, while Sen allegedly did so from October or November 2023 through March 2025. Prosecutors said both were motivated by financial need.
Tsai, who had transferred from military service to the Coast Guard, allegedly lent a bank account to Sen to help her receive payments from the Chinese contacts.
Yu, who had previously been indicted in a separate case involving the alleged disclosure of military secrets, is accused of helping move the money through cryptocurrency transactions.
From March through October 2024, Yu allegedly received cryptocurrency from Chinese contacts through a digital wallet in his name. Following their instructions, he deposited funds into accounts belonging to Lee and Tsai, a method prosecutors said was intended to conceal the source of the proceeds.
Prosecutors alleged that Lee received 884,000 New Taiwan dollars ($27,200), and Sen and Tsai received a combined 515,000 New Taiwan dollars ($15,850). Yu received 430,403 New Taiwan dollars ($13,250).
The High Prosecutors Office accused Lee, Sen, and Tsai of betraying their obligations to protect Taiwan’s national security for personal gain. Prosecutors said the alleged disclosures could undermine military operational security and national defense interests amid longstanding military tensions across the Taiwan Strait.
The case comes amid longstanding military tensions between Taiwan and China. China’s ruling Chinese Communist Party, which has never governed Taiwan, claims the self-ruled island as part of China and has not ruled out using force to bring it under Beijing’s control.
Yu was described by prosecutors as an important intermediary in the alleged payment scheme. They noted that he had already faced charges in a separate military secret disclosure case but allegedly continued to help Chinese contacts transfer funds through another channel.
Following the indictments, Lee and Sen were brought before the Taiwan High Court, which ordered both detained pending further proceedings. Tsai and Yu were released on bail during the investigation and are barred from leaving Taiwan, according to Taiwan’s national news agency CNA.
Zhong Yuan contributed to this report.
