Taichung prosecutors are investigating a case in which a well-known criminal is said to have been directing his gang from inside his prison cell, helping it to win several public construction contracts, with a legislator and prison officials allegedly involved in the scandal.
Prosecutors said that the suspect, Lu Chao-chin (盧照琴), nicknamed “Crazy Chin,” who once topped the list of the nation’s most-wanted criminals, has been serving a sentence in Tainan Prison since November.
Lu was found guilty for his part in the blackmail of veteran TV personality Peng Chia-chia (澎恰恰). Peng was the victim of a sex VCD blackmail scandal perpetrated by Lu.
VIOLENCE
Prosecutors said they were probing a criminal gang that had allegedly used intimidation and violence to win several local public construction and sand-digging bids when they found the ring’s leader Fu Lin-ssu (傅麟斯) often referred to “the boss” in his telephone conversations.
Prosecutors suspect the boss is a reference to Lu.
The gang has threatened a number of other companies to prevent them from taking part in public bids and used violence if they refused, prosecutors said.
Taichung District Court on Thursday ordered Fu as well as another two members of his gang detained.
Prosecutors suspect that Lu is controlling the gang’s operations from his prison cell, with a legislator and Tainan Prison officials also implicated.
Prosecutors discovered that Fu had visited Lu twice in prison, once in the company of a legislator.
During the visits the prison offered the men a room for them to talk without any monitor.
Prosecutors refused to reveal the name of the legislator.
RECORDINGS
They said that they had reviewed recordings of the conversations during the two visits, and although the men did not mention “business,” they said the recordings might have been stopped when discussions turned to sensitive matters.
Prosecutors said that they were in the process of trying to discover whether the legislator and prison officials were involved in the scandal.
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