Taipei District prosecutors on Tuesday requested a life sentence for a man who allegedly committed armed robbery and homicide at a jewelry store two months ago.
Prosecutors allege that 40-year-old Chen Shun-ching (陳順進) targeted a jewelry store in Wanhua District (萬華) in August and waited until the shop owner went upstairs to make his move. Chen, armed with a watermelon knife, allegedly injured one store clerk and killed another.
Prosecutors allege that Chen slashed one clerk’s neck, causing a deadly injury, and slashed at the other clerk twice when he thought she was trying to press a bell to call security. Chen fled, allegedly making off with 373 gold rings.
Police officers found a knife at the jewelry store.
They said they had matched the fingerprints on the knife to Chen, who has a criminal record for drugs.
When questioned by prosecutors, Chen reportedly confessed to robbing the store because he needed money to pay off gambling debts and because he was a heroin addict.
He had been drinking heavily on the day of the robbery in the Lungshan Temple area and was very drunk by the time he arrived at the store, he reportedly said. Chen reportedly said he didn’t realize he had killed anyone because he was so drunk.
Prosecutors have charged Chen with armed robbery and homicide.
They said they will ask for a life sentence even though Chu confessed because of the cruel and serious nature of the crimes.
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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