Investigators working with Vietnamese law enforcement officers last month seized an estimated NT$2 billion (US$63.24 million) of ketamine, a record haul that resulted in the arrest of six people, including two Taiwanese, the Criminal Investigation Bureau said yesterday.
An analysis of data showed suspicious movements by fishing vessels in Southeast Asia, Third Investigation Corps Captain Chang Wen-yuan (張文源) told a news conference in Taipei.
Cashflow records indicated that a transnational drug smuggling syndicate was operating, so the bureau reached out to representatives in Vietnam to liaise with local law enforcement, Chang said.
Photo copied by Chiu Chun-fu, Taipei Times
The joint operation uncovered a syndicate allegedly headed by a Chinese national surnamed Liao (廖), the bureau said, adding that the syndicate had plans to transport a large shipment of ketamine and raw materials to destinations including Taiwan.
The narcotics were transported over land through Laos to two concrete warehouses in Vietnam’s Haiphong City and Ha Tinh Province before fishing vessels were to ship them to Taiwan and elsewhere, it said.
However, police raids late last month intercepted 1,350kg of ketamine, worth an estimated NT$2 billion, in the warehouses, it said.
It was a record drugs bust for Vietnam, the bureau said.
Two Taiwanese surnamed Tseng (曾) and Huang (黃) were arrested along with two Chinese nationals and two Laotian nationals, it said.
The investigation would be expanded to identify other suspects, it added.
The two Taiwanese would be tried in Vietnam and would only be repatriated to Taiwan after serving any sentences handed down by the court in the Southeast Asian country, Chang said.
Additional reporting by CNA
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS