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The son of a former Taiwanese lawmaker has been sentenced to more than two years in prison for a plan that illegally supplied thousands of tons of fuel oil to North Korea.
Huang Chung-Wei was sentenced to 28 months in prison by the district court in southern Kaohsiung on Tuesday. Five other people also received prison terms.
They were convicted of loading fuel into a Taiwanese ship and working with Kwek Kee Seng, a Singaporean businessman who the US wanted, whose location was unknown, to carry out a transfer.
Such activities are violations of Taiwan’s counterterrorism financing law and other laws, the court said.
Illegal relocations at sea are one of the few ways North Korea has largely isolated from the international community, allowing fuel to be obtained due to the strict UN sanctions on its nuclear weapons and missile programs.
Taiwan is not a UN member of the North Korean allies’ allies, China’s claims, but has committed to complying with all the world’s rulings regarding Pyongyang.
The lawsuit against Huang dates back to 2019, and it is said that he and Kwek purchased a fleet of tankers, loaded up fuel and sent out a transfer.
North Korea is known to operate the “Shadow Fleet,” a vessel operated without an active electronic identification device.
However, the US intelligence agency was able to track satellite transfers and provide information to Kaohsiung investigators, the court said.
Fan’s father was a member of Taiwan’s parliament for the Progressive Party of the ruling Democrats.
It was not clear how much money he made from the scheme, or whether he would appeal the sentence.
Additional sources •AP