Tue, Mar 30, 2004 page3

• Chief investigator denies he's easy on Chen

  ASSASSINATION PROBE Chen has promoted Hou You-yi several times, but the Criminal Investigation Bureau head said this won't affect the shooting investigation

  • By Cody Yiu / STAFF REPORTER
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  Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) Commissioner Hou You-yi (侯友宜) assured legislators yesterday that he would do his best to find the would-be assassin who fired two shots at President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) a day before the March 20 presidential election, despite suggestions that he was beholden to the president for his promotions.

  "We will pursue the truth behind this case, regardless of who is involved and who the culprit is. My promotions have nothing to do with this," Hou said in response to a question from People First Party (PFP) Legislator Lee Ching-hua (李慶華) during a Home and Nations Committee session at the Legislative Yuan.

  

  Criminal Investigation Bureau Commissioner Hou You-yi points at a picture of President Chen Shui-bian's gunshot wound yesterday as he explains to the legislature that Chen had no bullet traces on his pants because he was struck below his navel but above his belt.

  PHOTO: YEH CHI-MING, TAIPEI TIMES

  Hou's outstanding record in solving major crimes while he served in the Taipei City Criminal Investigation Corps in the mid 1990s impressed the president, who was then the city's mayor.

  Hou has been promoted three times since, most recently last year, when he was promoted to his current position as the head of the CIB.

  Lee asked Hou whether these promotions could affect his professional ethics.

  "You have benefited from the president greatly, as he has promoted you several times since he was the Taipei mayor. If the president staged the shooting, would you be able to look into it fairly?" Lee asked.

  As well as denying the suggestion, Hou indicated that resolving the case would be time consuming, as a crime scene reconstruction was required.

  "Even though the campaign route went on for about 70km to 80km, and there were about 500 to 600 individuals in the crowd, we are reducing the scope of the crime scene and are definitely making progress," Hou said.

  Hou said that three foreign forensics experts arrived in Taiwan yesterday to offer their specialized analyses of the case.

  "As long as it is within judicial limits, the CIB will provide necessary information for these foreign experts to help them conduct analyses," Hou said.

  Independent Legislator May Chin (高金素梅) condemned the police and security forces for allowing the president and the vice president to be in the same vehicle on the day of the shooting.

  In response, Hsu Li-meng (許立孟), the chief of internal security at the Presidential Office, said: "It was against national security, but not against the law."

  Despite the doubts raised by several legislators, Minister of the Interior Yu Cheng-hsien (余政憲) said he was confident about solving the case, possibly before the presidential inauguration on May 20.
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