Taichung judges yesterday ordered the detention of a gangster who is believed to have been the mastermind in the murder of gangster Weng Chi-nan (翁奇楠) late last month.
Yang Ding-jung (楊定融) was repatriated to Taiwan on Saturday following his arrest at China’s Xiamen Airport.
Taichung District Court Judge Chang Kuo-chung (張國忠) said that because the crime Yang was believed to have been involved in was severe and because he could conspire with other suspects or destroy evidence if he were free, the court chose to detain him.
In addition, with Liao Kuo-hao (廖國豪), the alleged gunman, still on the run, holding Yang in custody could help the investigation.
Chang Yu-hao (張育豪), another suspect who was arrested on Saturday, was released on bail, although prosecutors wanted him to remain in custody, Chang Kuo-chung said.
The evidence did not prove that Chang Yu-hao drove the gunman to the crime scene and drove him away afterward, the judge said.
Police claim that both Chang Yu-hao and Liao, 18, were gangsters under Yang and suspected Yang ordered the pair to carry out the murder.
Police believe Yang hired Liao to kill Weng on May 28 and that he left for Xiamen the same day.
Chang Kuo-chung said Yang denied any involvement in the murder.
Police said they were able to contact Yang’s family and Yang in Xiamen, urging Yang to return to Taiwan to report to police.
Taiwanese police officers seized Yang at Xiamen Airport, Taipei police said.
Taiwanese media have raised questions as to why Yang turned himself in, as he was suspected of being a middleman, with more senior gangsters behind the murder.
Police also denied reports that Liao died after the murder.
The murder shook the nation’s police system after it was discovered that four Taichung police officers were playing mahjong and drinking tea as the gunman walked into Weng’s office and shot him.
Police have since established that as many as 10 police officers had been in Weng’s office at one point, suggesting ties between Taichung police and gangsters.
Former Taichung police commissioner Hu Mu-yuan (胡木源) and several senior Taichung police officers were removed from their posts or disciplined over the scandal.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
The age requirement for commercial pilots and airline transport pilots is to be lowered by two years, to 18 and 21 years respectively, to expand the pool of pilots in accordance with international standards, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced today. The changes are part of amendments to articles 93, 119 and 121 of the Regulations Governing Licenses and Ratings for Airmen (航空人員檢定給證管理規則). The amendments take into account age requirements for aviation personnel certification in the Convention on International Civil Aviation and EU’s aviation safety regulations, as well as the practical needs of managing aviation personnel licensing, the ministry said. The ministry
RSS