Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Yeh Yi-jin (葉宜津) yesterday apologized to police and the public over alleged improper conduct by her assistant when seeking to defend a friend accused of drunk driving.
New Taipei City police on Monday approached an illegally parked vehicle in Sanchong District (三重) and spoke with a man, surnamed Chang (張) — a former assistant to DPP Legislator Gao Jyh-peng (高志鵬) — who police said was intoxicated.
Despite numerous requests to produce identification, Chang refused and allegedly had a physical altercation with officers. He was taken to a police station where he was charged with obstructing officers in the discharge of their duty and breathalyzed, police said.
Chang was waiting to meet friends after a dinner party attended by Yeh’s office chief executive, surnamed Chen (陳), and Gao’s assistant, surnamed Wang (王).
Following the arrest, Chen and Wang went to the police station and reportedly argued with officers. Wang questioned the police over their actions, which he said were excessive, while Chen demanded an explanation from the New Taipei City Police Department and the National Police Agency (NPA).
According to Chinese-language Apple Daily, Chen threatened to have NPA Director-General Chen Kuo-en (陳國恩) present a special report on the matter in the Legislative Yuan, a tactic sometimes employed by lawmakers to humiliate officials.
Yeh on Tuesday apologized for Chen’s behavior, saying that he has since been fired.
The 56-year-old lawmaker from Tainan, who is known for her own combative style, yesterday apologized for a second time for her former assistant’s behavior, adding that she has zero tolerance for drunk driving.
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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