Nine people have been arrested and more than NT$12.75 million (US$431,355) in counterfeit New Taiwan dollars seized in a raid on a suspected drug and counterfeiting ring, the Taipei City Police Department said today.
The ring was allegedly led by a man surnamed Ko (柯), a 55-year-old member of the Four Seas Gang (四海幫), and a man surnamed Lu (呂), both of whom have prior convictions, the department told a news conference held by its Criminal Investigation Division.
The investigation began in October last year after police received intelligence on drug production and trafficking, said Shih Chun-hsing (施純興), supervisor of the division's second section.
Photo courtesy of the Taipei City Police Department via CNA
The Taipei District Prosecutors' Office then authorized the launch of a special task force to investigate the case, and identified Ko and Lu as the ringleaders, Shih said.
The arrests were made during coordinated raids in Taipei, New Taipei City and Hsinchu City, while police also found a drug repackaging site at a private residence, Shih said.
Five air guns, 76.38g of heroin, 154.87g of amphetamine, 14.56g of etomidate, 474.3g of propylene glycol, 1,162.8g of glycerol and NT$361,000 were confiscated at the scene, Shih said.
Lu, who police said is known as the "counterfeit currency master," was imprisoned in the 1990s for manufacturing older versions of NT dollar bills and released in 2020.
At Lu's residence, officers confiscated 12,756 counterfeit NT$1,000 banknotes, 35 uncut counterfeit sheets each containing four NT$1,000 bills and other materials used to produce fake paper currency, police said.
People should be alert as counterfeit notes are believed to be in circulation, the department said.
It released nine serial numbers that might have been used: RZ239907GM, PY288965HL, PW498068FL, TZ169260GQ, FL486439XJ, QW015231ET, QW672165AK, NX706635HK and TV208156DQ.
The department urged anyone who encounters counterfeit currency to contact the police immediately and not use or retain the notes.
All nine suspects' cases have been transferred to the Taipei District Prosecutors' Office. They are suspected of contravening the Penal Act of Offenses Against National Currency (妨害國幣懲治條例) and the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act (毒品危害防制條例).
An exhibition demonstrating the rejuvenation of the indigenous Kuskus Village in Pingtung County’s Mudan Township (牡丹) opened at the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency’s conservation station in Taipei on Thursday. Agency Director-General Lin Hwa-ching (林華慶) said they have been promoting the use and development of forestry resources to local indigenous residents for eight years to drive regional revitalization. While modern conservation approaches mostly stem from western scientific research, eco-friendly knowledge and skills passed down through generations of indigenous people, who have lived in Taiwan for centuries, could be more suitable for the environment, he said. The agency’s Pingtung branch Director-General Yang Jui-fen (楊瑞芬)
Restaurants in New Taipei City, Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County are to be included in the Michelin Guide’s review for the first time this year, alongside existing entries from Taipei, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung, the France-based culinary publication said yesterday. This year’s edition of the Michelin Guide Taiwan is to be unveiled on Aug. 19 in Taipei. In addition to the coveted star ratings, Michelin Taiwan would announce its “Bib Gourmand” selections — a distinction awarded to establishments offering high-quality food at moderate prices — on Aug. 12. This year’s Bib Gourmand list would also feature restaurants in New Taipei City, Hsinchu
A firefighter yesterday died after falling into New Taipei City's Xindian River when a rescue dinghy capsized during a search mission for a man who was later found dead. The New Taipei City Fire Department said that it received a report at 4:12pm that a 50-year-old man, surnamed Chen (陳), had fallen into the river. A 32-year-old firefighter, surnamed Wu (吳), was among the rescuers deployed to look for Chen, the fire department said, adding that he and five other rescue personnel were in the dinghy when it capsized. Wu had no vital signs after being pulled from the water to the
Academics have expressed mixed views on President William Lai’s (賴清德) nomination of High Prosecutors’ Office Chief Prosecutor Tsai Chiu-ming (蔡秋明) as a Constitutional Court justice and the head of the nation’s top judicial body. While prosecutors have served as justices at the Constitutional Court over the years, including Judy Ju (朱富美), an incumbent, the appointment of a prosecutor as president of the Judicial Yuan, which presides over the Constitutional Court, would be unprecedented. Retired law professor Lin Teng-yao (林騰鷂) said that Tsai’s nomination was an “abuse” of power by Lai, and called on the legislature, in which the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)
RSS