Prosecutors in Pingtung County have arrested a man suspected of killing a Formosan black bear, while an investigation into several alleged accomplices is ongoing.
A man surnamed Yen (顏), a resident of Pingtung’s Wutai Township (霧台), was apprehended during a police raid on Friday last week, after reports of illegal poaching and killing of wild animals.
The carcasses and body parts of a Formosan black bear, a Formosan sambar deer, a Taiwanese serow and wild goats were found in a freezer in Yen’s home.
Photo: CNA
After questioning, Yen was released on bail of NT$200,000.
He faces pending charges of contravening the Wildlife Conservation Act (野生動物保育法).
The raid was conducted by Pingtung County head prosecutor Chang Chun-hsiang (張鈞翔) together with local police officers, and they also seized a modified rifle.
A video of Yen and other Wutai residents started to circulate online yesterday, showing two scooter riders holding a dead bear between them as they drove down a road, while a man holding a rifle, allegedly Yen, sat in the rear seat of a scooter behind them.
The video sparked outrage, as people demanded justice to be brought to all the alleged accomplices.
Due to the additional evidence in the video, prosecutors yesterday said they would re-investigate the case, and would question the alleged accomplices of illegal poaching.
Some people criticized the law that only allows indigenous people to own rifles for hunting, but under restricted conditions, such as conforming to local practices and registering the arms with the local police station.
“I also got angry when seeing the video... We give respect to indigenous people’s hunting culture, but they also must obey our the nation’s legal statues,” Pingtung County Commissioner Pan Men-an (潘孟安) said yesterday.
“The Formosan black bear is a protected species, it is in serious decline with very few left, and should not be hunted. Police have focused on the suspects, and are investigating the case,” Pan said.
“As citizens of Taiwan, no matter where people live, we must protect these wild animals. Killing of protected species is not allowed in Taiwan,” Pan added.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was sentenced to six months in prison, commutable to a fine, by the New Taipei District Court today for contravening the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法) in a case linked to an alleged draft-dodging scheme. Wang allegedly paid NT$3.6 million (US$114,380) to an illegal group to help him evade mandatory military service through falsified medical documents, prosecutors said. He transferred the funds to Chen Chih-ming (陳志明), the alleged mastermind of a draft-evasion ring, although he lost contact with him as he was already in detention on fraud charges, they said. Chen is accused of helping a
SECURITY: Starlink owner Elon Musk has taken pro-Beijing positions, and allowing pro-China companies to control Taiwan’s critical infrastructure is risky, a legislator said Starlink was reluctant to offer services in Taiwan because of the nation’s extremely high penetration rates in 4G and 5G services, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said yesterday. The ministry made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, which reviewed amendments to Article 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act (電信管理法). Article 36 bans foreigners from holding more than 49 percent of shares in public telecommunications networks, while shares foreigners directly and indirectly hold are also capped at 60 percent of the total, unless specified otherwise by law. The amendments, sponsored by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ko
NON-RED SUPPLY: Boosting the nation’s drone industry is becoming increasingly urgent as China’s UAV dominance could become an issue in a crisis, an analyst said Taiwan’s drone exports to Europe grew 41.7-fold from 2024 to last year, with demand from Ukraine’s fight against Russian aggression the most likely driver of growth, a study showed. The Institute for Democracy, Society and Emerging Technology (DSET) in a statement on Wednesday said it found that many of Taiwan’s uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) sales were from Poland and the Czech Republic. These countries likely transferred the drones to Ukraine to aid it in its fight against the Russian invasion that started in 2022, it said. Despite the gains, Taiwan is not the dominant drone exporter to these markets, ranking second and fourth
The eastern extension of the Taipei MRT Red Line could begin operations as early as late June, the Taipei Department of Rapid Transit Systems said yesterday. Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said it is considering offering one month of free rides on the new section to mark its opening. Construction progress on the 1.4km extension, which is to run from the current terminal Xiangshan Station to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, was 90.6 percent complete by the end of last month, the department said in a report to the Taipei City Council's Transportation Committee. While construction began in October 2016 with an
RSS