A Taiwanese-German woman, long believed to be a key witness in the murder of navy Captain Yin Ching-feng (
Speaking at a press conference in Taipei yesterday to publicize her book, Surfacing: Mysteries about the Yin Ching-feng case, Tu Cheng Chun-chu (涂鄭春菊) said she hoped that her memoirs would help remove the label "key witness," which has been imposed upon her since the murder of Captain Yin.
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
"My book is entitled `Surfacing' mainly as a declaration of my determination to speak openly about what I know -- and don't know -- of the Yin case," Tu said at the press conference.
For the past seven years, Tu has been one of the key witnesses in the Yin case. Part of the reason is that Tu was the person Yin planned to visit before he went missing.
"On that day, Dec. 9, around 7:00am, Yin Chin-feng called and said that he would be over in 10 minutes ... however, he never showed up," Tu wrote in her book.
Others also wondered why Tu left Taiwan immediately after one of Yin's colleagues informed her of the death. Yin's body was found drifting off the coast of Suao in Ilan County later that day, apparently killed by a blow to the back of the head.
"Yin talked with me on the phone before he died. But until I was informed of his death, I had no idea what had happened and I wasn't involved. I was also curious about what had happened to Yin," Tu said.
Tu said the reason she left the country following Yin's murder was because the navy had instructed her to do so.
"The navy told me that if any accident befell Yin, I would never be able to return to Taiwan again. And I asked the naval procurement officer `what does that have to do with me?'" Tu wrote in her book. "But he refused to give me an explanation."
At the time, Tu was in Taiwan negotiating with the navy over spare parts for four German-made minesweepers. She worked as a broker on behalf of a German arms manufacturer. Yin was sent by the navy to talk with her, since he was then the director of the navy's procurement office.
Tu, however, denied that she was an arms dealer.
"I was just handling the legal affairs of the deal," Tu said.
When asked by one reporter if she knew more about how Yin died and more details related to the case, Tu said, "If I knew I would tell you."
"All I know are some details related to the navy's procurement scandals during that period," Tu said.
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
Two US House of Representatives committees yesterday condemned China’s attempt to orchestrate a crash involving Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim’s (蕭美琴) car when she visited the Czech Republic last year as vice president-elect. Czech local media in March last year reported that a Chinese diplomat had run a red light while following Hsiao’s car from the airport, and Czech intelligence last week told local media that Chinese diplomats and agents had also planned to stage a demonstrative car collision. Hsiao on Saturday shared a Reuters news report on the incident through her account on social media platform X and wrote: “I
SHIFT PRIORITIES: The US should first help Taiwan respond to actions China is already taking, instead of focusing too heavily on deterring a large-scale invasion, an expert said US Air Force leaders on Thursday voiced concerns about the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) missile capabilities and its development of a “kill web,” and said that the US Department of Defense’s budget request for next year prioritizes bolstering defenses in the Indo-Pacific region due to the increasing threat posed by China. US experts said that a full-scale Chinese invasion of Taiwan is risky and unlikely, with Beijing more likely to pursue coercive tactics such as political warfare or blockades to achieve its goals. Senior air force and US Space Force leaders, including US Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink and
Czech officials have confirmed that Chinese agents surveilled Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) during her visit to Prague in March 2024 and planned a collision with her car as part of an “unprecedented” provocation by Beijing in Europe. Czech Military Intelligence learned that their Chinese counterparts attempted to create conditions to carry out a demonstrative incident involving Hsiao, which “did not go beyond the preparation stage,” agency director Petr Bartovsky told Czech Radio in a report yesterday. In addition, a Chinese diplomat ran a red light to maintain surveillance of the Taiwanese
RSS