Taipei City Police Department’s Lanya Police Station on Saturday said it has found a man suspected of throwing semen at a Japanese woman on Monday last week in the Tianmu (天母) area of Shilin District (士林).
The incident occurred at 2am when the woman was walking alone down an alley, station Deputy Chief Chu Hsin-hung (朱信煌) said.
After throwing a substance at her, the suspect, a 28-year-old man surnamed Hsu (許), stared and followed her for about 10 seconds before fleeing, Chu said.
The woman was not immediately aware of what was thrown at her, but noticed that her hand was swollen after brushing away the liquid and smelled an unpleasant odor, Chu said.
The victim reported the incident to the police with her husband and a Taiwanese friend, he said, adding that although the friend acted as translator, there were communication difficulties, as the officer on duty did not speak Japanese.
The police identified a suspect using surveillance camera footage and brought the man in for questioning, he said.
Chu cited Hsu as saying that he threw semen at the woman, who was a victim of opportunity, and that no dangerous chemicals were used in the attack.
Police have transferred the case to the Shilin District Prosecutors’ Office, recommending that Hsu be charged with assault and sexual harassment, he said.
The woman’s complaint that the police had initially refused to investigate the case was untrue and the language barrier had caused a misunderstanding, for which the precinct had apologized, Chu said.
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