The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office yesterday indicted Internet influencer Holger Chen (陳之漢) for allegedly calling for the decapitation of President William Lai (賴清德) during a live stream in October last year.
While Chen was commenting on Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) “decapitation strike” exercises around Taiwan, he allegedly segued into a specific threat to cut off Lai’s head, prosecutors said.
“Decapitate Lai Ching-te’s dog head,” he said, according to prosecutors. “Bro, I am waiting for you... I have waited for it day and night.”
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
After a three-month investigation, prosecutors charged Chen with contraventions of the Criminal Code for “threatening to cause injury to the life, body, freedom, reputation, or property of another, thereby endangers the person’s safety” and “endangering public safety.”
Chen was released on NT$150,000 bail after being questioned by prosecutors in October last year.
Chen at the time defended himself, saying that he meant no offense, and that he was responding to audience questions about current events.
“A military ‘decapitation’ operation is clearly not the same as calling to ‘behead’ the nation’s president,” prosecutors said.
Chen expressed support for a PLA military attack against Taiwan, picking up the term “decapitation operation” from news reports, which he distorted into “beheading” Lai, which is a concrete threat of criminal violence, prosecutors said, adding that it exceeded the bounds of acceptable free speech.
Chen’s remarks were sufficient to instill fear in any ordinary person, regardless of whether they are the president, they said.
Additional reporting by CNA
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