Taoyuan police yesterday arrested 10 people suspected of smuggling birds from China into Taiwan aboard passenger planes.
The suspects were arrested at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and 38 birds were destroyed by the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine.
The bureau said the smuggling of birds from China could lead to the spread of bird flu in Taiwan.
Taoyuan County Police Chief Lin Te-hua (
Lin said police had arrested primary suspect Chen Lien-chun (陳廉鈞), 46, and nine others.
Lin said Chen had admitted to hiring a number of accomplices and completing more than 20 smuggling trips.
Late on Sunday, police discovered 24 birds in passenger Yin Po-hui's (
All the birds were still alive.
A search revealed another 14 birds concealed among the possessions of nine other travelers.
Chen told police he smuggled the birds because they are very popular in Taiwan.
He said each bird was worth more than NT$20,000 in Taiwan, but could be bought very cheaply in Guangzhou.
He told police he had offered the other suspects plane tickets and accommodation in China as well as NT$10,000 in cash in return for smuggling the birds into the country for him.
Taiwanese Olympic badminton men’s doubles gold medalist Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) and his new partner, Chiu Hsiang-chieh (邱相榤), clinched the men’s doubles title at the Yonex Taipei Open yesterday, becoming the second Taiwanese team to win a title in the tournament. Ranked 19th in the world, the Taiwanese duo defeated Kang Min-hyuk and Ki Dong-ju of South Korea 21-18, 21-15 in a pulsating 43-minute final to clinch their first doubles title after teaming up last year. Wang, the men’s doubles gold medalist at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics, partnered with Chiu in August last year after the retirement of his teammate Lee Yang
FALSE DOCUMENTS? Actor William Liao said he was ‘voluntarily cooperating’ with police after a suspect was accused of helping to produce false medical certificates Police yesterday questioned at least six entertainers amid allegations of evasion of compulsory military service, with Lee Chuan (李銓), a member of boy band Choc7 (超克7), and actor Daniel Chen (陳大天) among those summoned. The New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office in January launched an investigation into a group that was allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified medical documents. Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) has been accused of being one of the group’s clients. As the investigation expanded, investigators at New Taipei City’s Yonghe Precinct said that other entertainers commissioned the group to obtain false documents. The main suspect, a man surnamed
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer began talks with high-ranking Chinese officials in Switzerland yesterday aiming to de-escalate a dispute that threatens to cut off trade between the world’s two biggest economies and damage the global economy. The US delegation has begun meetings in Geneva with a Chinese delegation led by Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰), Xinhua News Agency said. Diplomats from both sides also confirmed that the talks have begun, but spoke anonymously and the exact location of the talks was not made public. Prospects for a major breakthrough appear dim, but there is
The number of births in Taiwan fell to an all-time monthly low last month, while the population declined for the 16th consecutive month, Ministry of the Interior data released on Friday showed. The number of newborns totaled 8,684, which is 704 births fewer than in March and the lowest monthly figure on record, the ministry said. That is equivalent to roughly one baby born every five minutes and an annual crude birthrate of 4.52 per 1,000 people, the ministry added. Meanwhile, 17,205 deaths were recorded, resulting in a natural population decrease of 8,521, the data showed. More people are also leaving Taiwan, with net
RSS