Judges in Taichung yesterday turned down a request by prosecutors to detain a man allegedly involved in the murder of a gangster in the city late last month.
Police believe that Su Kuan-yu (蘇寬裕), an associate of alleged gangster Yang Ding-jung (楊定融), was involved in the slaying of Weng Chi-nan (翁奇楠) in his office on May 28.
Taichung District Court spokesman Chang Kuo-chung (張國忠) said prosecutors would file a new request, as Su is believed to have been the person who drove a vehicle stolen in Hsinchu to Taichung, where he allegedly gave the keys to an unidentified suspect who drove the gunman to Weng's office.
“Su had nothing to do with the vehicle on May 28, when the murder took place. Prosecutors and police did not provide sufficient evidence to prove that he has been in communication with other suspects in the case either,” Chang said. “Prosecutors and police will have to work harder on this.”
At press time, Yang, Chang Yu-hao (張育豪), the alleged teenage assassin Liao Kuo-hao (廖國豪) and Su were still considered suspects in the case. Yang, who was apprehended at Xiamen Airport and deported, was arrested on his arrival at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Saturday and is now in detention. Chang, who was also arrested on Saturday, is believed to have been the driver who helped ditch the vehicle at Sun Moon Lake the day after the murder. He was released on NT$30,000 bail. Liao's whereabouts remain unknown.
The Taichung County Police Department, meanwhile, made public an audio clip of a conversation between a secret informant and police on June 15, dismissing accusations they were making no effort to locate the assassin.
“We did receive a call and officers arrived at the scene within seven minutes, but we did not see any 'suspicious man' there,” said Chang Chi-hsiang (張啟祥), deputy director of Taichung County Police Department's Taiping Precinct (太平分局).
The remarks were in reference to an unidentified woman who called a TV news channel's talk show on Sunday night to say that Liao had been seen visiting his grandparents' home in Taiping on June 15. The woman who saw him called the police but they failed to respond the caller said.
Taichung County Police contacted the caller, who told police she was not the woman who called police and that she had “heard” the story from someone else.
Chang Chi-hsiang said the woman who called the police on June 15 said she saw “a teenage man who was acting strangely” and hoped police would come as soon as possible.
The deputy said the woman did not identify the young man as Liao and could not clearly describe the man's features. The location she mentioned was not Liao's grandparents’ residence.
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