The incident occurred at the end of February when a cable between the island groups of Penghu (Pescadorerna) and Taiwan was cut. Shortly thereafter, the Togo-flagged vessel was stopped.
According to prosecutors, the captain knew that the vessel's electronic sea chart "marked the location of Taiwan's underwater cables" and it was a prohibited anchoring zone.
The captain allegedly deliberately dropped anchor and then steered the vessel in a zigzag pattern above the cable to destroy it, according to prosecutors. The man denies the crime.
The vessel was financed by Chinese funds, and the seven other Chinese nationals arrested along with the captain will not be prosecuted. Instead, they will be deported to China, according to prosecutors in the case.
In recent years, a number of underwater cables off Taiwan have been damaged, and previous incidents have been blamed on either natural deterioration of the cables or Chinese vessels.
China insists that Taiwan is part of its territory and uses a range of tactics, including military and political, to pressure Taiwan.
