Taiwan's Taitung county is at the center of a graft investigation that is bad news for council speaker Wu Hsiu-hua, the KMT's candidate for county magistrate, as her family's resort project draws criminal charges.

• Wu's family is tied to the Dongying resort, accused of illegally building farm roads beyond permitted limits.
• Her aide Chiu Chia-ping is jailed and held incommunicado on corruption charges, and was hauled in for fresh questioning.
• Prosecutors say Chiu shifted from claiming she knew nothing to what they call rambling excuses, insisting she was only passing along an ordinary constituent request to the county government.
• Chiu was the main link between the family and county officials, appearing at the resort's environmental review as a company representative under the title of secretary.
• Investigators say the evidence is already solid, and a prosecutor known for blunt questioning could push for a heavy sentence if she keeps dodging.

Outlook: More questioning and possible additional charges are likely, putting Wu's run for county magistrate under growing strain.