Senior HTC executives arrested after allegedly stealing company secrets

Senior executives at tech giant HTC have been arrested and detained by the Taipei District Court, accused of embezzlement and attempting to steal trade secrets from the company, according to reports.

According to the Taipei Times, the executives face charges under Taiwan’s Trade Secrets, Securities Exchange Act and other laws

The court is currently holding HTC’s vice general manager of research, Chien Chih-lin and department director Wu Chien-hung in custody, while senior engineer Huang Hung-yi and senior manager Huang Kuo-ching have been released on bail.

The executives are accused of planning with local government officials on the mainland to establish a series of mobile phone design firms in mainland China, which would utilise HTC’s trade secrets and technology.

The company is also accusing the officials of attempting to steal key commercial secrets relating to the company’s Sense smartphone interface and using fake expense receipts in order to fraudulently gain reimbursements from the company.