Taipei: Taipei District court sentenced three retired officers from the Military Intelligence Bureau (MIB) to prison on the charge of forming a spy ring to collect sensitive information on China's behalf, Taiwan News reported.

The Taipei District Court verdicts can still be appealed. Former Major General Yueh Chih-chung was sentenced to 10 months in jail, retired Colonel Chang Chao-jan received a prison term of 18 months, and ex-Colonel Chou Tien-tzu was sentenced to 14 months. Ex-Colonel Wang Ta-wang was found not guilty, as per Taiwan News report on Friday.

Taiwan News reported that Chang, Chou, and Yueh reaped benefits from China for their business, and were invited on free trips, according to prosecutors. A national security official in the Chinese province of Guangdong told them to form a spy ring and collect secret information from Taiwan.

Chang was accused of arranging a trip to China for Wang, who revealed personal background information about colleagues to the Chinese officials.

After completing their investigation, prosecutors decided to charge the suspects with breaking the National Security Act by forming a spy organization and the National Intelligence Work Act by leaking secrets, Taiwan News reported.

On August 30, the Taiwanese Supreme Court sentenced a father and son duo for eight years in prison on the charge of enticing active military officers to pass on secret information about the annual Han Kuang drills to China.

The Supreme Court rejected final appeals on August 29. The two suspects, surnamed Huang, first came into contact with Chinese intelligence officials in 2015 when they were doing business in Xiamen.

As per Taiwan News, the duo recruited two officers in separate air defence and missile units, Yeh and Su.

The group passed on eight secret documents about the Han Kuang exercises. They delivered the information personally to China or sent images and graphics by messaging software.

This report is auto-generated from a syndicated feed