The Taipei District Prosecutors' Office yesterday said that prosecutors have started investigations into whether Shihlin Judge Chen Li-fan (陳麗芬) prematurely escorted her husband from a police station after his arrest for drunk driving.
"We hold video tapes and cassettes that contain pictures and audio taken at the police station, and will try to figure out what was going on," said Chen Hung-ta (
Chen said that Chen Li-fan will be charged with interference with public functions if police find she removed her husband, lawyer Sun Ming-si (
Sun was arrested for an offense against public safety by the Taipei City Police's Ta-an Precinct around 1am on Thursday morning. However, he denied drunk driving allegations and refused to sign any documents.
According to the precinct, at 3am, officers asked Sun to call a family member to pick him up from the police station and told him he would be released if prosecutors gave permission.
The police said that in addition to issuing a ticket, in drunk-driving incidents they fax a detailed report to the local prosecutors' office and ask the duty prosecutor if the offender should be transferred to the prosecutors' office for further interrogation or detention. If the duty prosecutor does not return the fax or call back to the police station with an answer within two hours, the police will release the offender.
Chen Li-fan arrived at the station around 4am. The police said that she immediately showed her credentials and asked to review her husband's file record. Police refused the request because she was not involved in the case.
Chen then left the station with her husband. Officers at the scene said they were shocked but that nobody attempted to stop the couple from leaving.
When questioned by reporters, Chen said that she did not threaten the police and that the allegations against her were exaggerated.
She said that she asked police if she could see her husband's file record to make sure everything on it was clear and accurate and that she did not restate her demands after her request was refused.
According to Chen, since the police refused to talk to her, she tried to have them transfer the case to the prosecutors' office to give her the opportunity to talk with prosecutors. However, duty police officers asked her to stop arguing and leave, at which point the couple left the building.
"The only reason I showed them my credentials was to let them know that I am also a judicial officer, I know what my rights are and I know what I am doing. That was all," Chen said.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was sentenced to six months in prison, commutable to a fine, by the New Taipei District Court today for contravening the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法) in a case linked to an alleged draft-dodging scheme. Wang allegedly paid NT$3.6 million (US$114,380) to an illegal group to help him evade mandatory military service through falsified medical documents, prosecutors said. He transferred the funds to Chen Chih-ming (陳志明), the alleged mastermind of a draft-evasion ring, although he lost contact with him as he was already in detention on fraud charges, they said. Chen is accused of helping a
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
SECURITY: Starlink owner Elon Musk has taken pro-Beijing positions, and allowing pro-China companies to control Taiwan’s critical infrastructure is risky, a legislator said Starlink was reluctant to offer services in Taiwan because of the nation’s extremely high penetration rates in 4G and 5G services, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said yesterday. The ministry made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, which reviewed amendments to Article 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act (電信管理法). Article 36 bans foreigners from holding more than 49 percent of shares in public telecommunications networks, while shares foreigners directly and indirectly hold are also capped at 60 percent of the total, unless specified otherwise by law. The amendments, sponsored by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ko
A Japan Self-Defense Forces vessel entered the Taiwan Strait yesterday, Japanese media reported. After passing through the Taiwan Strait, the Ikazuchi was to proceed to the South China Sea to take part in a joint military exercise with the US and the Philippines, the reports said. Japan Self-Defense Force vessels were first reported to have passed through the strait in September, 2024, with two further transits taking place in February and June last year, the Asahi Shimbun reported. Yesterday’s transit also marked the first time since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office that a Japanese warship has been sent through the Taiwan
RSS