The head of a criminal ring that allegedly tortured 58 people and killed three others has been arrested and the victims freed, Taoyuan authorities said yesterday.
Police arrested Chen Wei-hua (陳樺韋), 37, in Taoyuan’s Gueishan District (龜山) at about 11pm on Friday, and seized NT$520,000 (US$16,157) in cash at his residence, they said.
Forensic investigators determined that Chen was running a human trafficking ring that engaged in kidnapping, torture and extortion, authorities said.
Photo: CNA
Sixteen others believed to be a part of the organization were also arrested, they said.
Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said that the arrests followed swift efforts by police.
“These arrests required diligence, and the government praises the police endeavors in this case. We must bring to justice every criminal engaged in this crime,” he said, adding that he thanked the officers for rescuing the 58 people being held against their will.
He also said that jobseekers should be wary to not fall into traps, which are indicated by job advertisements that offer excessively high pay for easy working conditions.
Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office Chief Prosecutor Chang Tou-hui (張斗輝) yesterday said that forensic experts are to investigate the case.
They are to examine the flow of the organization’s funds and look for other members and accomplices, Chang said.
The Association for Victims Support is to provide legal assistance, counseling and other assistance to the rescued people and their families.
Raids were first conducted in New Taipei City’s Tamsui District (淡水) on Tuesday, with 26 people released and eight suspects arrested. Another eight suspects were arrested in Taoyuan’s Jhongli District (中壢), where 32 more people were released. It was there that three others were found dead.
New Taipei City Police Department Criminal Investigation Corps head Hsiao Juei-hao (蕭瑞豪) coordinated the raids.
Two bodies recovered in Taoyuan were alleged victims of torture, while a third victim was found on a mountain road in Nantou County, Hsiao said.
Police at the Taoyuan site seized handcuffs, plastic wrist binders, electroshock weapons, metal rods and other devices believed to have been used to torture the victims, all of whom had bruises and injuries, with some indicating they had been burned with cigarettes, Hsiao said.
The rescued captives testified to being handcuffed to prevent their escape, and being beaten with clubs and metal rods for not cooperating, Hsiao said.
The victims also said when taken outside to withdraw money from their bank accounts, they had cloth stuffed into their mouths to prevent shouts, and were confined to inside rooms with 24-hour monitoring after being drugged.
US climber Alex Honnold is to attempt to scale Taipei 101 without a rope and harness in a live Netflix special on Jan. 24, the streaming platform announced on Wednesday. Accounting for the time difference, the two-hour broadcast of Honnold’s climb, called Skyscraper Live, is to air on Jan. 23 in the US, Netflix said in a statement. Honnold, 40, was the first person ever to free solo climb the 900m El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite National Park — a feat that was recorded and later made into the 2018 documentary film Free Solo. Netflix previewed Skyscraper Live in October, after videos
Starting on Jan. 1, YouBike riders must have insurance to use the service, and a six-month trial of NT$5 coupons under certain conditions would be implemented to balance bike shortages, a joint statement from transportation departments across Taipei, New Taipei City and Taoyuan announced yesterday. The rental bike system operator said that coupons would be offered to riders to rent bikes from full stations, for riders who take out an electric-assisted bike from a full station, and for riders who return a bike to an empty station. All riders with YouBike accounts are automatically eligible for the program, and each membership account
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
Temperatures are forecast to drop steadily as a continental cold air mass moves across Taiwan, with some areas also likely to see heavy rainfall, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. From today through early tomorrow, a cold air mass would keep temperatures low across central and northern Taiwan, and the eastern half of Taiwan proper, with isolated brief showers forecast along Keelung’s north coast, Taipei and New Taipei City’s mountainous areas and eastern Taiwan, it said. Lows of 11°C to 15°C are forecast in central and northern Taiwan, Yilan County, and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, and 14°C to 17°C
RSS