A man who killed a four-year-old girl with a meat cleaver last year was yesterday sentenced to life in prison for what judges called a depraved crime carried out in an extremely vicious manner.
The Shilin District Court found Wang Ching-yu (王景玉), 34, guilty of murdering the child in Taipei last year.
Wang was convicted of intentional homicide of a child, which carries a maximum punishment of a life sentence and deprivation of civil rights for life, the ruling said.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
The judges refrained from imposing the death penalty, citing international human rights conventions that prohibit “cruel or inhumane punishment against defendants with disabilities or suffering from mental disorders.”
On March 28 last year, Wang bought a meat cleaver from a store before attacking the girl, nicknamed “Little Lightbulb” (小燈泡), who was riding a bicycle with her mother in Neihu District (內湖).
He used the cleaver to strike her neck region 23 times.
Her mother, Claire Wang (王婉諭), said she tried to stop the attack, but it happened too fast for her to react, and that Wang Ching-yu overpowered her.
Prosecutors requested the death penalty and said they would consider an appeal.
Investigators said that Wang Ching-yu had prior convictions for drug offenses, while a psychiatric evaluation showed he had symptoms indicating schizophrenia.
However, the evaluation showed that Wang Ching-yu was cognitively normal and had normal control when carrying out the crime, which meant he did not qualify for exemption from the death penalty under the provisions of the Criminal Code.
Chief Judge of the court’s administrative section Huang Chieh-ju (黃潔茹) said judges could not impose the death penalty because the nation is seeking to comply with international conventions, including the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
“A medical diagnosis determined that the defendant had schizophrenia and other mental disorders,” Huang said.
“Therefore, under the protection of these conventions, the judges could not impose the death penalty. They could only hand down a life sentence,” Huang said.
The ruling said the defendant had personality disorders and encountered problems as a young person.
In the aftermath of the crime, he showed no remorse or empathy, the ruling said, adding that there would be a high risk that he would reoffend if he were to return to society.
Authorities have detained three former Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TMSC, 台積電) employees on suspicion of compromising classified technology used in making 2-nanometer chips, the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office said yesterday. Prosecutors are holding a former TSMC engineer surnamed Chen (陳) and two recently sacked TSMC engineers, including one person surnamed Wu (吳) in detention with restricted communication, following an investigation launched on July 25, a statement said. The announcement came a day after Nikkei Asia reported on the technology theft in an exclusive story, saying TSMC had fired two workers for contravening data rules on advanced chipmaking technology. Two-nanometer wafers are the most
DEFENSE: The first set of three NASAMS that were previously purchased is expected to be delivered by the end of this year and deployed near the capital, sources said Taiwan plans to procure 28 more sets of M-142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), as well as nine additional sets of National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), military sources said yesterday. Taiwan had previously purchased 29 HIMARS launchers from the US and received the first 11 last year. Once the planned purchases are completed and delivered, Taiwan would have 57 sets of HIMARS. The army has also increased the number of MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) purchased from 64 to 84, the sources added. Each HIMARS launch pod can carry six Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems, capable of
CHINA’s BULLYING: The former British prime minister said that he believes ‘Taiwan can and will’ protect its freedom and democracy, as its people are lovers of liberty Former British prime minister Boris Johnson yesterday said Western nations should have the courage to stand with and deepen their economic partnerships with Taiwan in the face of China’s intensified pressure. He made the remarks at the ninth Ketagalan Forum: 2025 Indo-Pacific Security Dialogue hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Prospect Foundation in Taipei. Johnson, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time, said he had seen Taiwan’s coastline on a screen on his indoor bicycle, but wanted to learn more about the nation, including its artificial intelligence (AI) development, the key technology of the 21st century. Calling himself an
South Korea yesterday said that it was removing loudspeakers used to blare K-pop and news reports to North Korea, as the new administration in Seoul tries to ease tensions with its bellicose neighbor. The nations, still technically at war, had already halted propaganda broadcasts along the demilitarized zone, Seoul’s military said in June after the election of South Korean President Lee Jae-myung. It said in June that Pyongyang stopped transmitting bizarre, unsettling noises along the border that had become a major nuisance for South Korean residents, a day after South Korea’s loudspeakers fell silent. “Starting today, the military has begun removing the loudspeakers,”
RSS