The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office yesterday said it has charged a gynecologist at National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) for allegedly sexually assaulting three women, after the Control Yuan conducted its own probe of the case last year.
The doctor, surnamed Cheng (鄭), is a specialist at the NTUH Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, the indictment said.
Cheng was indicted on two counts of aggravated attempt to commit sexual assault and one count of aggravated obscenity against a victim’s will under the Criminal Code after examining testimony and evidence presented by the three victims, the office said.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
After the alleged incidents in 2020, 2021 and 2022, the women filed complaints requesting that the school and hospital suspend Cheng from teaching and medical practice, and pursue other punishment.
After neither National Taiwan University nor NTUH conducted an internal probe, the women went to Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Fan Yun (范雲), who convened a news conference in March last year to publicize the allegations.
The publicity led to a Control Yuan probe into the case.
Fan and the women alleged that no action was taken, as Cheng is a leading figure in obstetrics and gynecology.
The three women worked in sales for pharmaceutical firms and had business interactions with Cheng, they said.
They alleged that he invited them for dinner, and spiked their drinks with a date rape drug.
One woman said she woke up in a medical lab at NTUH with some of her clothing removed.
Another victim said she met with Cheng for dinner at a beer hall to try to make a sale, then fell asleep after drinking wine brought by Cheng and later woke up inside a motel room naked.
The other woman told investigators that Cheng took her to dinner to continue talking business, during which they consumed alcohol.
She said the doctor groped her and committed acts of obscenity while at the restaurant.
When investigating judicial complaints, Taipei prosecutors coordinated police units to search Cheng’s residence and his office in April, seizing computers and telecommunication records.
After questioning, Cheng was released on bail of NT$400,000.
There was at least one other victim, who said she was groped and her clothing was removed by Cheng in 2021, but prosecutors rejected her complaint for lack of evidence.
All the women said they fell asleep after drinking beverages.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by