A heavily armed ex-police officer accused of several robberies in Central Taiwan, was arrested in Changhua late Friday night after a standoff with police. Hua Min-hsi (
Local media reported yesterday that police from the Criminal Investigation Bureau (
According to the news reports, Hua was then questioned throughout the night in an attempt to find out the whereabouts of his accomplice, Wu Chun-ching (吳俊卿).
Hau was later transferred to the Yunlin Prosecutors' Office for further questioning yesterday.
Hua has admitted to taking a hostage for ransom in Erlin Township (二林鄉) in Changhua County on Nov. 5 last year. He also admitted shooting a police officer in the chest during an exchange with the police in Yunlin county on Feb. 3 this year, and to spraying the home of Yunlin County councilor Hong Chin-nan (洪進南) with bullets on March 20 this year, reports said.
He also opened fire at the offices of Yunlin County councilor Su Wen-chang (蘇文章) on April 6 this year, and at a businessman in Wujih Township (烏日鄉) on June 20, the reports said.
Hua is also accused of being involved in a shooting incident at a video arcade in Panchiao, Taipei County, late last year in an attempt to extort NT$30 million.
Hua and his gang also are suspected of shooting and killing two people in a market in Yunlin County, the reports said.
Hua firmly denied any involvement in that incident, and his denial was initially accepted by police and prosecutors following their initial interrogation, reports said.
Hua and Wu are also under investigation for involvement in several cases of extortion in Central Taiwan that took in large sums of money, reports said.
The Taipei Department of Health yesterday said it has launched a probe into a restaurant at Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store after a customer died of suspected food poisoning. A preliminary investigation on Sunday found missing employee health status reports and unsanitary kitchen utensils at Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in the department store’s basement food court, the department said. No direct relationship between the food poisoning death and the restaurant was established, as no food from the day of the incident was available for testing and no other customers had reported health complaints, it said, adding that the investigation is ongoing. Later
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