Notorious gangster Lin Chen-hsing (
Lin, 47, who was released on bail by Tainan judges earlier this month, was a member of notorious kidnapper Chang Hsi-ming's (張錫銘) crime ring and was a "boss" in the Taichung area.
Tainan prosecutors and judges have been investigating Lin's involvement in several kidnappings in which Chang has been implicated, including those of former Taichung City Council vice speaker Chang Hung-nien (
Chang Hsi-ming (
Lin was arrested by Chinese police in January and was subsequently deported to Taiwan.
Last July Tainan prosecutors indicted Lin for his role in several kidnappings and asked Tainan District Court to sentence him to death.
However, on March 6, Tainan District Court judges released him on bail of NT$1 million (US$30,260).
Taichung police said Lin was with friends at a teashop in Taichung on Friday afternoon when a man wearing a helmet burst into the shop and opened fire on Lin, who was hit by five bullets.
Police said the suspect ran off and escaped on a scooter driven by an accomplice.
Lin was rushed to a nearby hospital where he died yesterday afternoon.
Taichung police were out in force yesterday in an effort to prevent possible gang-related revenge attacks.
Tainan prosecutor Tsai Ying-Chun (蔡英俊), who indicted Lin, told reporters yesterday he was upset and confused about why the court had freed Lin, a suspect facing serious criminal charges.
He said a Tainan prosecutor attending Lin's hearing had protested when judges agreed to release Lin, but the court ignored his objection.
Tainan District Court yesterday released a press statement maintaining that Lin's release was legal.
Also see story:
Politicians point fingers over Taichung gang war
NO-LIMITS PARTNERSHIP: ‘The bottom line’ is that if the US were to have a conflict with China or Russia it would likely open up a second front with the other, a US senator said Beijing and Moscow could cooperate in a conflict over Taiwan, the top US intelligence chief told the US Senate this week. “We see China and Russia, for the first time, exercising together in relation to Taiwan and recognizing that this is a place where China definitely wants Russia to be working with them, and we see no reason why they wouldn’t,” US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a US Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing on Thursday. US Senator Mike Rounds asked Haines about such a potential scenario. He also asked US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse
NOVEL METHODS: The PLA has adopted new approaches and recently conducted three combat readiness drills at night which included aircraft and ships, an official said Taiwan is monitoring China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) exercises for changes in their size or pattern as the nation prepares for president-elect William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration on May 20, National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) said yesterday. Tsai made the comment at a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, in response to Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Ting-yu’s (王定宇) questions. China continues to employ a carrot-and-stick approach, in which it applies pressure with “gray zone” tactics, while attempting to entice Taiwanese with perks, Tsai said. These actions aim to help Beijing look like it has
China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open. Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino. “Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and
INSPIRING: Taiwan has been a model in the Asia-Pacific region with its democratic transition, free and fair elections and open society, the vice president-elect said Taiwan can play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a forum in Taipei yesterday, highlighting the nation’s resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. “Not only can Taiwan help, but Taiwan can lead ... not only can Taiwan play a leadership role, but Taiwan’s leadership is important to the world,” Hsiao told the annual forum hosted by the Center for Asia-Pacific Resilience and Innovation think tank. Hsiao thanked Taiwan’s international friends for their long-term support, citing the example of US President Joe Biden last month signing into law a bill to provide aid to Taiwan,