News Brief: More principals indicted on lunch bribe charges

Ten public elementary school and junior-high school principals were indicted yesterday by prosecutors in Banciao District (板橋), New Taipei City (新北市), on suspicion of taking bribes from school lunch suppliers, the Taipei Times reports today (full article here).

Banciao prosecutors last month indicted eight public elementary school principals in New Taipei City and have so far brought 18 principals before the courts.

Banciao prosecutors expanded the investigation yesterday by questioning another five principals in the city.
 

Prosecutors asked the Banciao District Court to sentence them to between 15 and 20 years in jail.

 

Schools typically hold bids for lunch suppliers once a semester. To gain an edge, prosecutors said some suppliers increased the price of their lunches by between NT$2 and NT$5 a serving, which went to bribes for the principals.
The bribes totaled between NT$200,000 and NT$300,000 a semester for some principals.
 

Prosecutors said they have summoned a total of 34 principals for questioning so far and that another three principals had been reported to prosecutors.