TAIPEI, TAIWAN - Taiwanese prosecutors have indicted three members of detained ex-president Chen Shui-bian's family on charges relating to the former leader's corruption trial, prosecutors said on Friday.

In addition, Chen's wife - who has already been charged with various offences in the wide-ranging case - is accused of instigating perjury in the run-up to the trial.

Chen, who left office last year after a maximum eight years, stands accused of embezzling public funds, money laundering, accepting bribes on a land deal, influence peddling and forgery.

On Friday, a spokesman for Taipei district prosecutor's office said Chen's son, Chen Chih-chung, daughter, Chen Hsing-yu, and son-in-law, Chao Chien-ming, together with businesswoman Diana Chen, had been charged with giving conflicting testimony in the ex-president's corruption trial.

Former first lady Wu Shu-chen was indicted for instigating perjury as she allegedly instructed her children to lie during a probe into the embezzlement charges against both herself and her husband, the prosecutor said. Chen's wife, son, daughter-in-law and brother-in-law have already been charged with various offences in connection to the far-reaching case, which has engrossed Taiwan for months.

Chen, who has been detained since December, has dismissed his lawyers and kept silent in recent court sessions to protest against his detention and trial. He denies the charges and says the allegations against him and his family are politically motivated and orchestrated by his China-friendly successor, President Ma Ying-jeou.

A panel of judges at Taipei district court on Monday turned down Chen's latest bail request, his third, saying he might try to flee the island. They also accused him of attempting to interfere with the judicial process. Under Taiwanese law, there are no limits on how long Chen can be detained.