The results of a report recently released by US forensic expert Henry Lee (
While commenting on the results of the report yesterday af-ternoon, officials refuted Lee's comments on Saturday that the shooting could not have been politically motivated and emphasized that the investigation will continue regardless of politics.
The report, which Lee handed over to the State Prosecutor-General's Office after its completion last Saturday, is the finished result of Lee's two months of work on the case, which still has local authorities stumped.
Officials said that the information in Lee's reports mainly corroborates police findings so far.
"Much of the report is similar to what we have in our reports. However, Lee's forensic data analysis is much more accurate than what we could have gotten from our facilities here in Taiwan," said Judy Cheng (程曉桂), the director of the Criminal Investigation Bureau's (CIB) Forensic Science Center.
A main contribution of the report, said officials, was Lee's conclusion that the gun barrels of the two modified pistols police suspect were used in the shooting may have been a single gun barrel cut in half. The conclusion, based on the special "tool marks" left on the two shell casings found at the crime scene, means that if police can discover the barrels' manufacturers, more headway might be made on finding the guns' creators or owners, CIB Commissioner Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said. This echoed sentiments Lee expressed in his comments on releasing the report.
Another contribution of the report, officials said, is Lee's findings about the compositions of the two bullets found at the crime scene.
With Lee's information, officials said, their search for the illegal firearms used in the shooting can be narrowed down.
Taiwanese police officials emphasized that they have been doing all they can to solve the case and have examined 2,044 homemade bullets since 19 March. Out of the 2,044, they have found 12 bullets with compositions identical to those left at the crime scene and are already looking into their potential sources. The police have also made 569 raids around Taiwan since the shooting to find illegal gun manufacturers, representatives from the State Public Prosecutor-General's Office said yesterday.
The written body of Lee's report has no conclusion on the possible motives and background of the shooter, according to officials, despite Lee's comments during a press conference he held on Saturday to explain the results contained in his report.
At the conference, Lee claimed that the election-eve shooting could not have been a political assassination attempt, since the weapons would otherwise have been more powerful.
In a seeming response to Lee's allegations that the shooting could not have been a political assassination because of inadequate firepower, State Public Prosecutor-General Lu Jen-fa (
Hou said that Lee's conclusion as to the motive and background of the shooter will have no effect on the continuing investigation.
"Lee's report did not say whether the shooting was a political assassination or not, in the hope that the report would give investigators more leeway and direction.
"The conclusion and motive have nothing to do with the investigation," Hou said yesterday.
At the press conference, officials urged the public to provide information on potential suspects, saying that they need all the help they can get.
Lee's report will be released by the CIB on an unspecified date.
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