One of the main suspects in the beating death of a police detective in Taipei earlier this month, Chou Yu-teng (周譽騰), turned himself in to the authorities yesterday afternoon after a manhunt by police, as the government faces pressure to investigate allegations of police corruption.
Chou was accompanied by his lawyer as he surrendered to the Taipei City Police Criminal Investigation Division office.
Hsueh Chen-kuo (薛貞國) died on Sept. 14 after being beaten up by a mob outside the ATT 4 FUN shopping mall in Taipei’s Xinyi District (信義).
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
The 38-year-old detective was assaulted by a group of about 50 people with sticks and knives in an ordeal that lasted at least three minutes.
He sustained multiple blows to the head and was declared dead after being rushed to hospital, police said.
Alleged to be a member of the Four Seas Gang, Chou yesterday said through his lawyer that he was not the one who shouted: “Kill him!” to fellow gang members, as reported by local media, adding that he was just an onlooker and did not take part in the incident.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice announced that it would set up a special task force to investigate allegations that corruption by Taipei police had played a role in the incident, adding that the ministry’s Agency Against Corruption would handle the investigation.
Separately, the Ministry of Finance said it would start conducting strict checks of the financial accounts and tax returns of nightclubs and related entertainment businesses.
In response to allegations that corrupt police have been receiving a slice of lucrative nightclub revenues, Minister of Finance Chang Sheng-ford (張盛和) promised a government crackdown.
Chang said his ministry’s National Taxation Bureau is working with the Taipei City Government and its police units to conduct more spot checks on nightclubs and related entertainment venues, and together would also look into business accounts and check for tax evasion.
Chang made the remarks on Monday amid questions by lawmakers accusing the finance ministry of negligence, as top-line nightclubs in Taipei City reportedly make profits of several tens of millions of NT dollars each month, with little scrutiny by tax officials.
Hsueh’s family on Monday filed a suit with the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office against Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei City Councilor Chung Hsiao-ping (鍾小平) for insinuating that Hsueh was corrupt.
Saying he had received calls from nightclub operators saying Taipei City police colluded with triads in these profitable entertainment venues, Chung last week suggested that Hsueh was one of the corrupt officers, who allegedly acted in a “white-glove” role, collecting bribes to distribute to his police colleagues in the Taipei Xinyi District Police Precinct.
“We heard these accusations in the media, so we had to stand up to defend my husband’s reputation. Our family wants to know what happened, and we believe the truth will clear his tarnished name,” Hsueh’s wife said.
Chung said he stands by his words.
Additional reporting by CNA
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS