Suspects in an alleged Taichung-based scam linked to reported investment in dialysis treatment in China were yesterday called in for questioning by the local branch of the Ministry of Justice’s Investigation Bureau.
Bureau officials in Taichung said an investigation was launched in June last year when it was noticed that multiple fundraising events were being held nationwide for an investment offer linked to dialysis treatment in China that promised a two-year return.
The bureau said its investigation found suspicious cash flows in the bank accounts of the primary suspect, surnamed Cheng (程), who despite lacking credentials as a physician, had apparently established dummy companies nationwide that hosted information sessions about the alleged investment opportunity.
The investigation found that Cheng allegedly grouped individuals together to raise NT$500,000 to NT$1 million (US$14,856 to US$29,691) to purchase hemodialysis machines that were to be leased to Chinese hospitals.
The bureau said investors were reportedly guaranteed dividends ranging from NT$10,000 to NT$20,000 per month, with the initial investment to be repaid within two years.
The bureau said more than 120 agents and officials on Monday conducted simultaneous searches of 19 locations under the organization’s name and confiscated more than NT$10 million in cash, four cars, an unknown quantity of diamonds, luxury watches, gold coins and bars and expensive wine.
The NT$60 million in the organization’s bank accounts has been frozen, the bureau said.
It said more than 1,000 people are believed to have invested in the scheme and a total of NT$3 billion was collected.
Cheng and the others are being questioned over alleged violations of the Banking Act (銀行法), the bureau said.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique