A man accused of punching a female passenger and damaging a tray table with a knife on a northbound Taiwan High Speed Rail train on Saturday has been released on bail of NT$29,000.
The Taipei District Court imposed residence restrictions on the suspect, surnamed Chen (陳), yesterday pending trial, but did not order detention.
Prosecutors later said they would not appeal the decision.
Photo copied by Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
Chen, a Nantou County resident in his 40s, was apprehended in the county on Sunday and transferred to prosecutors the next day following police questioning.
The incident occurred on Saturday when Chen was reportedly sitting on the floor of a train carriage, blocking an entrance.
A female passenger, surnamed Liu (劉), asked him to move, but to no avail.
As a result, she stepped over him to board the train at Miaoli Station.
About one hour later, while the train was traveling between Banciao Station in New Taipei City and Taipei Station, Chen allegedly lashed out at Liu and punched her.
He allegedly pulled out a dagger — about 30cm in length — from his backpack and stabbed a tray table with it.
He left the knife on the train and fled after arriving at Taipei Station.
Railway police identified Chen through CCTV footage and arrested him a day after the incident.
The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office on Monday requested permission from the district court to detain Chen, saying that the suspect was highly likely to have committed offenses, including intimidation and assault, and could flee or destroy evidence.
However, the court rejected the request, ruling that evidence is already available such as statements from Liu and witnesses, screenshots from surveillance footage and the knife confiscated as part of the investigation.
Therefore, the likelihood of the suspect destroying evidence and obscuring the facts of the case is low, the court said.
Furthermore, Chen was apprehended in Nantou County, near his residence, and there is no indication that he intended to leave the country or go into long-term hiding, it said.
Taiwan must first strengthen its own national defense to deter a potential invasion by China as cross-strait tensions continue to rise, multiple European lawmakers said on Friday. In a media interview in Taipei marking the conclusion of an eight-member European parliamentary delegation’s six-day visit to Taiwan, the lawmakers urged Taipei to remain vigilant and increase defense spending. “All those who claim they want to protect you actually want to conquer you,” Ukrainian lawmaker Serhii Soboliev said when asked what lessons Taiwan could draw from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Soboliev described the Kremlin as a “new fascist Nazi regime” that justified
The US House of Representatives yesterday passed the PROTECT Taiwan Act, which stipulates that Washington would exclude China from participating in major global financial organizations if its actions directly threaten Taiwan’s security. The bill, proposed by Republican US Representative Frank Lucas, passed with 395 votes in favor and two against. It stipulates that if China’s actions pose any threat to Taiwan’s security, economic or social systems, the US would, “to the maximum extent practicable,” exclude China from international financial institutions, including the G20, the Bank for International Settlements and the Financial Stability Board. The bill makes it clear that China
‘T-DOME’: IBCS would increase Taiwan’s defense capabilities, enabling air defense units to use data from any sensor system and cut reaction time, a defense official said A defense official yesterday said that a purported new arms sale the US is assembling for Taiwan likely includes Integrated Battle Command Systems (IBCS). The anonymous official’s comments came hours after the Financial Times (FT) reported that Washington is preparing a US$20 billion arms sale encompassing “Patriot missiles and other weapons,” citing eight sources. The Taiwanese official said the IBCS is an advanced command and control system that would play a key role in President William Lai’s (賴清德) flagship defense program, the “T-Dome,” an integrated air defense network to counter ballistic missiles and other threats. The IBCS would increase Taiwan’s
NOMINAL NEWLYWEDS: A man’s family and his wife — his long-term caregiver — are engaged in a legal dogfight over the propriety and validity of the recent union A centenarian’s marriage to his caregiver unbeknownst to his children has prompted legal action, as the caregiver accuses the man’s children of violating her personal liberty and damaging her reputation, while the children have sought a legal option to have the marriage annulled. According to sources, the 102-year-old man surnamed Wang (王) lives in Taipei’s Zhongshan District (中山) and previously worked as a land registration agent. Wang reportedly owns multiple properties and parcels of land worth several hundred million New Taiwan dollars and has ten children. His caregiver, a 69-year-old surnamed Lai (賴), has been caring for him since about 1999,
RSS