The sentences handed down to five individuals, two to death and three for life, in connection with a 1987 kidnap-murder case were again upheld by the Taiwan High Court yesterday.
Although the ruling was the case's seventh, crucial evidence in the case is still lacking and the fact that the victim's body has never been found has made the Lu Cheng case (
The convicted -- four men and a woman -- have, from the very early stages of the trial, retracted confessions they had made, claiming they were extracted under police torture. This claim has been confirmed by the state watchdog the Control Yuan, and two police officers were found guilty of torture by the High Court.
On Dec. 21, 1987, 10-year-old Lu Cheng went missing after school in Hsinchu City (
A kidnapper phoned his home and demanded a ransom of NT$1 million. The ransom was paid nine days later.
The kidnappers instructed Lu's mother to bring the money to a location beneath a highway flyover. From the highway above a basket on a rope was lowered, into which the money was put. However, Lu was never released.
In September of the following year the Criminal Investigation Corps of Taipei Municipal Police Department received a tipoff and afterwards arrested three juveniles who confessed to the crime and also the murder of a female insurance agent, Ko Hung Yu-lan (
The police arrested Chiou, his girlfriend Wu Shu-chen (
During interrogation all of the suspects, except one, confessed to both kidnapping and murder.
According to interrogation records the suspects killed Lu on the day they kidnapped him.
But later, as more details surfaced, the testimonies began to vary from one person to another and from time to time. As for the whereabouts of Lu's body, the accused first said it was buried in the hills of Hsinchu's suburbs and later that it was thrown into the into the ocean off Miaoli (
Later, all the suspects except for one juvenile surnamed Lo (
The defense claims that there is no direct evidence proving the convicted committed the crimes. They also argue that Lo had conspired with the police. Lo's family received a NT$800,000 award for helping police solve the crime after his uncle turned him over to the police.
Lu's family, however, still believes the convicted are guilty of the crimes.
The case has been returned to the High Court by the Supreme Court six times for procedural flaws in evidence, but the court has continued to issue a ruling of guilty.
The five can still appeal their case to the Supreme Court.
Taiwan yesterday said it was looking forward to attending an upcoming memorial in Japan to mark the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, a day after the Japanese city said it had retracted its previous decision to not invite Taiwan to the event. The case has been dealt with by Taiwan’s representative office in Fukuoka and the Nagasaki City Government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The ministry would decide who to send to the Aug. 9 event once it receives the invitation, it added. The ministry made the remarks following a Japanese media report on Saturday that said Nagasaki Mayor
LANDMARK: Taiwan and Haiti are set to mark the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations next year, the president said, adding that the two would deepen bilateral ties President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday pledged continued support for Haiti, particularly in food aid and healthcare, as the Caribbean nation faces ongoing social and economic challenges. Speaking at a meeting with Haitian Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Victor Harvel Jean-Baptiste, Lai said Taiwan would step up bilateral cooperation to help improve Haiti’s social infrastructure. Taiwan would continue supporting Haiti through initiatives aimed at improving healthcare, food security and overall development, he said. Taiwan and Haiti are set to mark the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations next year, the president said, adding that the two nations would continue to support each other and deepen bilateral
UNILATERAL: The move from China’s aviation authority comes despite a previous 2015 agreement that any changes to flight paths would be done by consensus The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday slammed Beijing for arbitrarily opening the M503 flight route’s W121 connecting path, saying that such unilateral conduct disrespected the consensus between both sides and could destabilize the Taiwan Strait and the wider region. The condemnation came after the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) earlier yesterday announced it “has activated the W121 connecting path of the M503 flight route,” meaning that west-to-east flights are now permitted along the path. The newly activated west-to-east route is intended to “alleviate the pressure caused by the increase of flights,” China’s state-run Xinhua news agency quoted China’s Taiwan Affairs Office
STRONG WINDS: Without the Central Mountain Range as a shield, people should be ready for high-speed winds, CWA weather forecaster Liu Yu-chi said Danas was yesterday upgraded to a typhoon and could grow stronger as it moves closely along the nation’s west coastline, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Hsinchu and Chiayi cities, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Hsinchu, Miaoli, Changhua, Yunlin, Nantou, Chiayi, Penghu and Pingtung counties have canceled work and school today. Work and school in Keelung, Taipei, New Taipei City and Taoyuan, and Yilan, Taitung, Hualien, Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties would continue as usual, although offices and schools would be closed in Taoyuan’s Luju (蘆竹), Dayuan (大園), Guangyin (觀音) and Sinwu (新屋) districts. As of 5pm yesterday, the typhoon’s
RSS