Ex-colonel from Taiwan sentenced to 20 years in prison for spying on China

A former Taiwan air force colonel has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for operating a secret group that spied on Taiwan for China.

Liu Sheng-shu was found guilty of getting other officers who were currently working in the military to send military information to Beijing.

Five other officers, who were part of the navy and air force, were sent to prison for periods ranging from six months to 20 years because of their participation.

According to local news, Liu was asked to join during a work trip to China in 2013.

According to reports, he allegedly operated a group of people who provided information, and he paid them through fake businesses.

The prosecutors said that he received money for giving away information about the military, like how airplanes and warships work.

Besides being sentenced to jail, the authorities took away NT$16. 7m (£425,000; $514,000) that they said were earned illegally.

Liu and six other officers were accused in January by the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office‘s Kaohsiung branch. One person was found not guilty.

Some important people from Taiwan’s military have been accused of helping China’s intelligence agency.

In January, a former high-ranking military officer was declared guilty of receiving free meals and trips from a businessman from Hong Kong who was acting on behalf of Beijing.

But his punishment was put on hold because he felt sorry and had never broken the law before.