The Taipei City Police Department yesterday made a public apology to family members of a man surnamed Tsai (蔡) who died from alleged physical abuse suffered while being arrested.
The 62 year-old Tsai allegedly attacked a pregnant woman in the Da-an Forest Park on Sunday afternoon with a beer bottle and was subdued by police and taken into custody. However, Tsai lost consciousness six hours later and despite being sent to hospital for treatment died on Wednesday.
Later that evening, a reporter for a military magazine said he had seen an arresting police officer kick Tsai in the head several times, adding that he suspected Tsai’s death had been the result of head injuries.
Following police officer Wu Chun-sheng’s (吳春生) admission that he had kicked Tsai in the head, both Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) and National Police Agency Director-General Wang Cho-chiun (王卓鈞) ordered an investigation.
Taipei City Police Department Commissioner Huang Sheng-yung (黃昇勇), Da-an Precinct commander Chang Chuan-tsung (張傳宗) and the department’s chief inspector Lee Chin-tien (李金田) yesterday held a press conference at the city police department to announce their findings.
Huang said that the act of a police officer kicking a civilian was inappropriate and made a public apology to the family members of the deceased and the public on behalf of the police department.
However, Huang also stressed that the cause of Tsai’s death has yet to be determined, adding that because of the confidentiality of the investigation, some information might not be released to the public at this time.
The department has forwarded all evidence on the case to the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office and the department will discuss potential administrative responsibilities that Wu would shoulder.
As of yesterday, Wu had been charged with severe assault and given a major demerit, as well as a suspension, Huang said.
Translated by Jake Chung, staff writer
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