The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it detained four Chinese and seized their vessel in a drug bust earlier this month that uncovered more than 700kg of narcotics.
During a Sept. 13 surveillance mission involving the Southern Sector Flotilla, the 4th Offshore Flotilla and the 11th Coastal Patrol Corps, officers intercepted a fishing vessel flying the Republic of China flag about 128 nautical miles (237km) off Cape Maobitou in Pingtung County’s Hengchun Township (恆春), the CGA said in a statement.
The vessel had switched off its automatic identification system, it said.
Photo: CNA
When ordered to stop for inspection, it sped away, leading to an hour-long chase during which it rammed one of the patrol vessels and zigzagged to evade capture, coast guard footage showed.
The ship, identified as the Cambodian-registered YAMA68, was eventually intercepted and boarded.
Officers found 48 bags of narcotics in a hidden compartment, including 10 bags of heroin weighing 209.3kg, 36 bags of cannabis weighing 472.39kg, one bag of methamphetamine weighing 18.2kg and one bag of nimetazepam weighing 18.3kg, the coast guard said.
The 718.19kg of narcotics had an estimated street value of more than NT$1.5 billion (US$49.6 million) — enough for nearly 2.5 million doses, it said.
CGA Tainan Reconnaissance Brigade deputy head Hsu Che-li (許哲理) said the YAMA68 was sailing toward the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙島) in the South China Sea and was believed to be en route to rendezvous with another vessel to offload the shipment before the drugs would be sold in Taiwan.
The captain and three crew members, all Chinese, have been detained on suspicion of contravening the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act (毒品危害防制條例).
They are being held incommunicado as the Tainan District Prosecutors Office investigates, Hsu said.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Travel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. The airline said that it has confirmed that the planned industrial action by its international wide-body cabin crew would go ahead on Thursday and Friday next week. While the Auckland-based carrier pledged to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of the workers’ strike, an Air New Zealand flight arriving at Taipei from Auckland on Thursday and another flight departing from Taipei for Auckland on Saturday would have to
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS