The Supreme Court ruled that Lu Ping-hung (呂炳宏), owner of Mama Mouth Cafe, was among the parties liable to pay compensation in a 2013 double murder by cafe manager Hsieh Yi-han (謝依涵).
The court on Thursday ruled that Lu and two other shareholders of the cafe, along with Hsieh, must pay NT$3.68 million (US$121,128) to the families of the two victims, businessman Chen Chin-fu (陳進福) and his wife, Chang Tsui-ping (張翠萍).
Hsieh was convicted, but appealed the death sentence, with the court handing her a life term in April in the final ruling.
Lu had hired Hsieh to manage the cafe on the shore of the Tamsui River (淡水河) in New Taipei City’s Bali District (八里).
At the start of the investigation, Hsieh was accused of killing the couple for money and dumping their bodies into the river in February 2013.
Their bodies were found washed up on the bank a few days later.
In Thursday’s decision, the judges ruled that Lu and the other two shareholders were liable for compensation, as they had hired Hsieh as the manager.
The couple became acquainted with Hsieh when they visited the cafe to have coffee, developing a friendly relationship with her, which became more intimate over time.
Chen reportedly bought jewelry and other expensive gifts for Hsieh, as well as giving her money to buy stocks.
It was reported that Chen had thought of Hsieh as his daughter, while Hsieh testified that the two had had a sexual relationship.
However, members of the murdered couple’s family vehemently denied this.
Hsieh dissolved sleeping pills into the couple’s drinks on the night of their deaths, investigators said.
When they blacked out, Hsieh dumped the bodies into the river before returning to the cafe and finishing her duties, the court said.
The court said that the cafe’s owner was partially responsible, as the murder was committed while Hsieh was at work, citing Article 188 of the Civil Code, which states: “The employer shall be jointly liable to make compensation for any injury which the employee has wrongfully caused to the rights of another in the performance of their duties.”
The court ruled that the owners of Mama Mouth Cafe did not properly supervise their employees and failed to check on the welfare of the victims, which could have prevented the tragedy.
Lu said he was shocked by the ruling, adding that he would have to sell his house to pay.
Chinese National Federation of Industries secretary-general Tsai Lien-sheng (蔡練生) said that the decision was detrimental to business conduct, as only the convict is responsible for the crime, while the employer should not be liable if they were not a party to the crime.
“This murder was a crime by an individual. The cafe had bad luck in hiring someone who became a murderer. The employer should not be responsible for the employees’ behavior. The ruling is wrong,” Tsai said.
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
RSS