The Supreme Court yesterday handed down final sentences to nine individuals in a case involving the killing of a police officer by a mob outside a Taipei nightclub in 2014, including eight-year jail sentences for the couple identified as the instigators of the incident.
The decision was handed down after the court rejected an appeal filed by nine defendants, including Tseng Wei-hao (曾威豪) and his wife, Liu Hsing-tung (劉芯彤), who were charged with inciting the mob to attack a police officer.
The seven others were also sentenced to jail terms of between seven years and 10 years, six months, the ruling said.
On Sept. 14, 2014, as Tseng and Liu were leaving the nightclub, they became embroiled in an argument with security personnel.
The couple and an associate, Hsiao Jui-hung (蕭叡鴻), an alleged member of the Bamboo Union, subsequently solicited the help of friends who gathered outside the nightclub.
A police officer, Hsueh Chen-kuo (薛貞國), was dispatched to the scene, where he was attacked by Tseng, Liu and about 60 others, ultimately beating him to death.
Of the 73 individuals involved in the case, 64 were given final sentences by a lower court, while nine others, including Tseng and Liu, were remanded and tried by the High Court in 2019.
On Dec. 28, 2017, the High Court handed down heavier sentences of 10 years in jail for Tseng and nine years for Liu in the second trial of the case.
The High Court in May last year ruled that as Tseng and Liu reached a financial settlement with Hsueh’s family, their sentences were reduced to eight years, while the other seven received sentences between seven years and 10 years, six months.
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