Judicial authorities yesterday took three men into custody for questioning in connection with a spate of panic buying at some supermarkets.
The Ministry of Justice’s Investigation Bureau (MJIB) said that two of those detained are cousins — one man surnamed Tsai (蔡), 46, and another surnamed Chang (張), 38, both of Taipei — and the other man is the director of a cultural promotion organization registered in New Taipei City.
The panic buying was sparked by a message posted on Tuesday on Professional Technology Temple, the nation’s most popular electronic bulletin board system, which was then disseminated to other social media platforms.
Photo: CNA
“I have received some important information that people should prepare to stockpile enough food and daily necessities to last for one month, while they should also immediately go to the bank and withdraw all their money,” the message said.
Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) officer Chen Chiung-chao (陳炯昭) said that the post was traced to Chang, who read it on a family message group on Line after it was posted by Tsai.
Tsai said that he posted the message on Line after reading an article on a blog, which the CIB traced to the director of the cultural promotion organization, also surnamed Chang (張).
When questioned, the cousins said that they circulated the message to their family and friends as a way of reminding them about a serious situation and that it was not done with malevolence.
They posted it on other Line groups to initiate discussion and exchange opinions on the matter, they said.
After taking statements from the three men and reviewing the evidence, MJIB Fake News Prevention and Control Center deputy head Liu Chia-jung (劉家榮) said the three men would be charged for contravening the Social Order Maintenance Act (社會秩序維護法) and Article 125-1 of the Banking Act (銀行法).
“The MJIB will continue to investigate this case, to determine if there are foreign sources involved in spreading this fake news, since it aimed to manipulate people’s fear and anxiety over the coronavirus outbreak, to cause disruption to the supply of goods and sow disorder in society,” Liu said. “We urge the public not to disseminate fake news and disinformation, as perpetrators will face criminal prosecution.”
ADEQUATE COVERAGE: New Taipei City, which has more than 9,500 people under home quarantine, said it would add another 450 rooms at its disease prevention hotels The Taipei City Government has added a fourth designated disease prevention hotel, allowing people under 14-day home quarantine to isolate themselves from NT$5,000 per day, it said yesterday. The Taipei Department of Information and Tourism launched the first disease prevention hotel on Feb. 21 to accommodate travelers without a place to stay during mandatory home isolation or quarantine, and for people who want to separate themselves from their family members or roommates during quarantine. The department said that as of yesterday, more than 120 travelers have stayed at one of the city’s three disease prevention hotels, and their 178 rooms are nearly
MISINFORMATION: The 100,000 masks given to ally Paraguay were bought in other Latin American nations, not made in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan has not yet reached a point where it can export masks to diplomatic allies amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, dismissing as misinformation online reports that it gave away masks to curry favor with a diplomatic ally. “Taiwan provides med-ical aid to diplomatic allies based upon specific circumstances,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said, adding that the supplements donated by Taiwan were all purchased locally in allied countries, in accordance with their needs. “The time is not yet ripe” for Taiwan to export medical supplies, such as surgical masks, to diplomatic allies, until
An improvised protective device for use when intubating patients designed by Taiwanese doctor Lai Hsien-yung (賴賢勇) is being adopted in the Philippines to help doctors there stay safe amid the worsening COVID-19 pandemic. “We made this acrylic aerosol box for my sister Dra. Frances Legaspi for Antipolo Doctors Hospital. Credits to Dr Lai Hsien-yung for the concept and design,” Anton Legaspi, whose family owns a business that makes customized designs, said on Facebook on Monday. The hospital is in Antipolo, about 25km east of Manila. Legaspi’s post was accompanied by several photographs of the box and a short demonstration video
All state-run columbariums must strictly regulate how many visitors they host during Tomb Sweeping Day on Saturday next week to curb the spread of COVID-19, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said yesterday. Hou asked people to use online worshipping services instead. Electronic “tomb sweeping” systems, which display a virtual altar for people to make offerings and say prayers, can reduce crowd sizes at columbariums, Hou said during a site visit to Shulin Life Memorial Hall (樹林生命紀念館), a columbarium in the city’s Shulin Disrict (樹林). Measures for admission control would be strictly implemented in state-run columbariums, Hou said, pointing to the Shulin
RSS