Police yesterday detained two suspects for questioning in relation to a letter bomb explosion in Kaohsiung that severely injured an interior design company owner surnamed Feng (馮), with preliminary investigations indicating that it was likely because of a financial dispute.
A woman surnamed Chung (鍾), 42, and a man surnamed Tai (戴), 62, were detained and later listed as suspects after raids in Pingtung and New Taipei City.
After being transferred to the Kaohsiung District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning, Chung is facing attempted murder and related charges.
Photo: Copy by Huang Liang-chieh, Taipei Times
A bail court judge granted prosecutors’ their request to detain Chung on restricted communication, while Tai was taken to Kaohsiung for questioning last night.
The explosion occurred at about noon on Wednesday, after a package addressed to Feng, 53, was delivered to the front door of his interior design company in Kaohsiung’s Gushan District (鼓山).
Residents said they heard a loud sound, then saw smoke and ashes drift from the building. Firefighters and medics arrived at the scene and Feng was taken to hospital for emergency treatment.
He was still in a critical condition as of press time last night.
Company employees said that the package exploded when Feng tried to open it, resulting in burns to about 60 percent of his body and injuries to his face, chest, hands and lower limbs.
Kaohsiung police and the Criminal Investigation Bureau formed a task force to investigate the case, which allegedly stems from a financial dispute, Gushan Police Precinct criminal investigations head Chang Ming-chang (張明彰) said.
“To run his business, Feng from 2013 to 2016 continually borrowed money totaling about NT$10 million [US$320,873] from Chung. Over the past few years, Chung demanded repayment,” Chang said.
For the attack, Chung allegedly enlisted the help of her friend, Tai, police said, citing surveillance footage that shows Chung driving a white sedan to an area near the interior design company, then Tai emerging from the vehicle with a package, walking to the company and putting the package down at the front door.
During questioning, Tai said that Chung told him to deliver the package, but he had no idea what was inside it.
Chung also denied playing a role, saying that Tai told her that the package was a practical joke and would surprise Feng when he opened it.
Police uncovered NT$1 million in cash at Tai’s home, Chang said, adding that investigators suspect the money is connected to the case.
US President Donald Trump said "it’s up to" Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) what China does on Taiwan, but that he would be "very unhappy" with a change in the "status quo," the New York Times said in an interview published yesterday. Xi "considers it to be a part of China, and that’s up to him what he’s going to be doing," Trump told the newspaper on Wednesday. "But I’ve expressed to him that I would be very unhappy if he did that, and I don’t think he’ll do that," he added. "I hope he doesn’t do that." Trump made the comments in
NOT AN OPENING: Trump’s violation of international law does not affect China’s consideration in attacking Taiwan; Beijing lacks capability, not precedent, an official said Taiwanese officials see the US’ capture of the president of Venezuela as a powerful deterrent to Beijing’s aggression and a timely reminder of the US’ ability to defeat militaries equipped with Chinese-made weapons. The strikes that toppled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro signaled to authoritarian leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), US President Donald Trump’s willingness to use military might for international affairs core to US interests, one senior official in Taipei’s security circle said. That reassured Taiwan, the person said. Taipei has also dismissed the idea that Trump’s apparent violation of international law could embolden Beijing, said the official, who was not
A cold surge advisory was today issued for 18 cities and counties across Taiwan, with temperatures of below 10°C forecast during the day and into tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. New Taipei City, Taipei, Taoyuan and Hsinchu, Miaoli and Yilan counties are expected to experience sustained temperatures of 10°C or lower, the CWA said. Temperatures are likely to temporarily drop below 10°C in most other areas, except Taitung, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, CWA data showed. The cold weather is being caused by a strong continental cold air mass, combined with radiative cooling, a process in which heat escapes from
Snow this morning fell on Alishan for the first time in seven years, as a strong continental cold air mass sent temperatures plunging across Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The Alishan weather station, located at an elevation of about 2,200m in central Taiwan, recorded snowfall from 8:55am to 9:15am, when the temperature dropped to about 1°C, the CWA said. With increased moisture and low temperatures in the high-altitude Alishan area, the conditions were favorable for snow, CWA forecaster Tsai Yi-chi (蔡伊其) said. The last time snow fell at the Alishan weather station was on Jan. 10, 2018, while graupel fell there
RSS