Authorities in Tainan yesterday said they uncovered a major Taiwanese telephone fraud ring that targeted people in China, after raiding a building and detaining 19 suspects.
Tainan officials said they received cooperation from Chinese authorities, who provided personal information of people affected and other evidence.
Police said they were surprised to find most of those in the ring were people in their teens and early 20s, led by three older members.
After questioning, the court approved for 18 suspects to be held incommunicado, with the remaining suspect exempted because he is 16 years old.
Criminal Investigation Bureau’s 7th Investigation Corps Captain Chang Wen-yuan (張文源) said the alleged scam ring set up elaborate dividing walls and metal doors, along with video cameras to alert them to intruders, so it took sustained efforts by about 100 police officers to make their way inside the building.
Chang said police confiscated computers, routers, telecommunications equipment, mobile phones and accounts books, along with lists of personal information of more than 10,000 Chinese citizens, and that at least 11 people had lost more than NT$50 million (US$1.55 million) each.
“The group was under surveillance for six months. They allegedly impersonate Chinese telecommunications officers, public security police and public prosecutors in calls to residents of China,” Chang said.
A phony prosecutor then tells the person that due to an ongoing investigation, they have to check personal assets and bank deposits, which are then transferred to accounts belonging to the group, and the victim is told that a collector would be dispatched to withdraw the money, Chang added.
Chang said police described the setup in the building as being like a cram school, with rows of desks and a supervisor in front to give instructions. One suspect allegedly said they first had to take lessons complete with guidebooks on how to deceive people on the telephone.
Separately in Yunlin County, prosecutors said they have wrapped up a two-year investigation and indicted 50 suspects on fraud and narcotics charges.
Yunlin County head prosecutor Huang Yi-hua (黃怡華) said the syndicate was headed by suspects Chang Wei-hsin (張維欣), 38, and Wang Chun-cheng (汪俊成), 33, who allegedly used ketamine to motivate and reward ring members.
“This group conducts telephone fraud, which resulted in many people losing their life’s savings, while tarnishing Taiwan’s image in the international community. They also provide members with narcotics as inducement, so it is an abhorrent crime ring,” Huang said.
Investigators said Chang and Wang installed telecoms equipment at seven different locations in Taoyuan in 2013 and 2014 to evade police monitoring.
After obtaining databases with personal information of Chinese citizens, the members allegedly impersonated public security police conducting investigations into fake drug possession and money laundering cases, then instructed people to transfer money into bank accounts belonging to the group.
Investigators found members of the group were given a “sales bonus” of 10g of ketamine when making more than 100,000 yuan (US$15,461) in one day, and 15g of ketamine for defrauding more than 150,000 yuan in a day.
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