The younger brother of the lead suspect in a triple homicide and dismemberment case in Kaohsiung is a wanted fugitive facing a 17-year prison sentence for selling heroin, a police source said.
The 73-year-old Chang Chieh-tsung (張介宗) at whose residence DNA evidence was found last week, remains the lead suspect in the murder case.
Police said they initially suspected that his younger brother, 71-year-old Chang Wen-tsung (張文宗), was involved, but it has since been ruled out.
Photo: Lee Hui-chou, Taipei Times
Investigators discovered that the younger brother has been wanted by authorities since 2023 after being convicted of selling Schedule I drugs.
The younger brother was initially sentenced to eight years and two months in prison, with a second hearing extending the sentence to 15 years and 10 months.
Combined with a remaining sentence from a previous parole case for a drug-related offense in 2011, this leaves the younger Chang facing a 17-year prison sentence.
He fled before he was able to serve the sentence.
Although the younger brother is registered as living with his brother in Kaohsiung’s Cianjhen District (前鎮), police suspect he has not been living at the residence, as it is less than 100m from Fuxing Police Station.
The task force investigating the case now believes that the likelihood of Chang Wen-tsung being the triple-homicide killer is low, although they are continuing to search for him in relation to the case.
However, investigators are reportedly looking into the possibility that Chang Chieh-tsung may have murdered his younger brother, as property disputes are suspected to be the motive for killing his sister-in-law.
The criminal history of the suspect’s younger brother has drawn widespread speculation.
The Kaohsiung Police Department said in a statement that they are searching for him, and in the meantime, there is no list of “10 victims” as speculated.
The department also warned the public against spreading rumors and inciting panic.
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