88 Club Gambling Boss Withdraws Appeal, Seeks to Begin Prison Term Quickly

Guo Zhemin, the head of the so-called 88 Club, told Taiwan’s High Court that he wanted to begin serving his prison sentence as soon as possible. He withdrew his own appeal after the court reduced his sentence to nine years and eight months.

Guo had initially appealed over the amount of criminal proceeds. He has now abandoned that appeal, leaving only the prosecution’s challenge to what it considers an overly lenient sentence. With his detention period nearing its limit, the High Court held a hearing on whether he should remain in custody.

“Second instance has already handed down its judgment, and I am no longer appealing. I hope it can be enforced as soon as possible. If the prosecutor insists on appealing, I hope the judge will consider granting me bail,” Guo said. He also urged prosecutors not to waste judicial resources.

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Second instance has already handed down its judgment, and I am no longer appealing. I hope it can be enforced as soon as possible. If the prosecutor insists on appealing, I hope the judge will consider granting me bail.

His lawyer said Guo was willing to enter prison directly and argued that detention in a remand center differs from imprisonment. “One day in detention and one day in prison are different. A detainee in a remand center cannot earn sentence-management credits,” the lawyer said. Those credits can later be considered in decisions on parole and other prison treatment. The lawyer added that Guo would accept a higher bail amount and strict electronic monitoring, arguing that he posed no flight risk.

The prosecution’s appeal means the case remains before Taiwan’s Supreme Court. The High Court will issue its decision on extending detention at a later date. Guo was convicted over profits from online gambling websites and underground currency exchanges. Authorities said the gambling operation generated about 35 billion New Taiwan dollars, while the underground exchange business handled 218 billion New Taiwan dollars and produced more than 1.2 billion New Taiwan dollars in profit. The total alleged illicit proceeds were about 37 billion New Taiwan dollars. The first-instance court imposed an 11-year-eight-month sentence and ordered the confiscation of seized Tether tokens valued at about 2 billion New Taiwan dollars, along with more than 35 billion New Taiwan dollars in criminal proceeds.

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One day in detention and one day in prison are different. A detainee in a remand center cannot earn sentence-management credits.