Forensic scientist Henry Lee (李昌鈺) will join the team of investigators looking into the circumstances surrounding the shooting of Sean Lien (連勝文) on the eve of the special municipality elections late last month.
The US-based Lee, who was in Taiwan yesterday to attend the establishment of the “Henry Lee Forensic Science Lecture Workshop” at National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, told reporters he had discussed Lien’s case with the Criminal Investigation Bureau, especially regarding the German-made pistol believed to have been used in the shooting.
Lee said he would look at the forensics and material evidence, but would not involve himself in the criminal and political aspects of the case.
PHOTO: WANG MIN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES
“I only want to do forensic work on this case; other investigation activities relating to the case are of no interest to me,” he said. “Criminal investigations should not be mixed with forensic work.”
It would not be the first time Lee has assisted investigators in high-profile criminal cases. He helped forensics experts in their probe of the March 2004 election-eve assassination attempt on former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮).
Judicial authorities have been under pressure to resolve the Lien case, in which Huang Yun-sheng (黃運聖), a 29-year-old bystander, was killed.
Suspected gunman Lin Cheng-wei (林正偉), who also goes by the name Ma Mien (馬面), has reportedly told investigators that he shot Lien, a son of former vice president Lien Chan (連戰), by mistake, saying that he had wanted to shoot a local Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) politician, Taipei County Deputy Speaker Chen Hung-yuan (陳鴻源), because of a land dispute involving Chen Hung-yuan’s family.
Lin’s claim was supported by the results of two polygraph sessions.
Sean Lien, who was shot in the face and was hospitalized for nine days, says the shooter was targeting him and not Chen Hung-yuan.
The incident gave rise to speculation that it was staged by KMT politicians, coming as it did just hours before the Nov. 27 elections.
Commenting on Sean Lien’s rapid recovery, Lee said it was possible for a person to recover quickly from non-fatal gunshot wounds and that a quick recovery did not necessarily mean that the shooting had been orchestrated.
A person can recover quite quickly from a shooting that does not damage major organs or tissue, he said.
The bullet entered Sean Lien’s left cheek and exited near his right temple. On his first public appearance after his discharge from hospital, Sean Lien had bandages on both sides of his face, wore a surgical mask and had a bloodshot eye. Reports that he was smiling and could eat bread days after the incident gave rise to speculation that the shooting may have been staged, or the severity of his wounds overplayed.
KMT Legislator Hsieh Kuo--liang (謝國樑), a close friend of Sean Lien, said he welcomed Lee’s participation in the investigation.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY FLORA WANG, STAFF REPORTER AND CNA
The National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology yesterday showcased its locally developed variants of the Vision 60 robotic patrol dog, which it plans to deploy on the nation’s outlying territories in the South China Sea. The variants were produced under the Joint Lab project — created by the institute and domestic companies — and assembled with domestically produced motors, lenses and artificial intelligence (AI) systems alongside licensed tech from the US, Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division deputy director Jen Kuo-kang (任國光) told the media event at a military base in Taipei’s Dazhi (大直) area. Taiwan has built up its strengths
RIGHT DIRECTION: Taiwan’s efforts to prevent forced labor include a proposal to ‘fully prohibit’ employers from withholding workers’ documents, an official said Taiwan is to establish a mechanism to restrict imports of goods linked to forced labor, the Executive Yuan said yesterday, after the US proposed imposing additional tariffs on Taiwanese goods over labor concerns. “The Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Economic Affairs are to establish an interministerial review procedure,” Executive Yuan spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said at a news briefing in Taipei. “The government is to use the Foreign Trade Act [貿易法] as the legal basis to restrict imports of goods produced with forced labor” and bring its supply chain governance more in line with international standards on human rights, resilience
NOT IMMEDIATE: Taiwan has a chance to appeal the proposed 10 percent tariff before it starts, while other countries face a 12.5 percent tariff from the trade office Taiwan is among 60 economies determined by the US to have failed to impose or enforce a ban on the importation of goods produced with forced labor, according to a notice released on Tuesday by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), which proposed imposing an additional 10 percent or more tariff on them. The USTR in a statement said that following an investigation, it had determined under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 that the failure of the 60 economies to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor is
TIT-FOR-TAT: The US allegedly revoked the visa of a Chinese national working at Xinhua News Agency in the US in response to Beijing’s expulsion of Vivian Wang The Presidential Office yesterday condemned China for expelling a New York Times correspondent from Beijing following the newspaper’s interview with President William Lai (賴清德), saying the move highlighted Beijing’s suppression of press freedom and its threat to international news media. Taiwan has noted a series of recent incidents in which Beijing used similar tactics to “threaten and pressure international media outlets and journalists,” Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said in a statement. “This concerns not only press freedom and freedom of expression, but also the safety of journalists, and Taiwan and relevant partners are paying close attention to the situation,” she
RSS