A Keelung man has been sentenced to two months in prison for threatening to kill Keelung Mayor George Hsieh (謝國樑) over a water issue with his home.
The Keelung District Court said in the verdict that the man, surnamed Chang (張), called the city’s citizen hotline at 7am on March 14 last year after becoming frustrated by an ongoing water supply issue.
Upon reaching the hotline representative, Chang threatened Hsieh by name, before going on to warn: “If you come bother me again where I live, I’ll go to Keelung City Hall and start killing people. If you have the guts, you can sue me.”
Photo: Lin Chia-tung, Taipei Times
The hotline worker notified the police, while Chang, who was later brought in for questioning, admitted to having threatened the mayor.
Hsieh told prosecutors he had been informed of the threat, but was unaware of the details and had not been concerned by it.
On those grounds, Chang was charged with endangering public safety by putting the public in fear of injury — rather than for endangering Hsieh specifically — under Article 151 of the Criminal Code.
In its verdict, the court said that while Chang made the threats with clear knowledge of what he was doing, he has a physical disability, which could have contributed to his frustration.
The court sentenced Chang to two months’ imprisonment, commutable to a fine of NT$60,000, significantly less than the maximum two-year prison sentence allowed under the law. The ruling can be appealed.
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