CRIME
‘Coldplay’ suspect nabbed
A 21-year-old has been arrested on suspicion of selling fake tickets for Coldplay concerts in Kaohsiung on Saturday and Sunday, police said yesterday. The suspect surnamed Wei (魏) was caught after completing a deal with someone at the high-speed rail’s Zuoying Station on Sunday, and three fake tickets, a smartphone and NT$10,000 in cash were seized, the Zuoying Precinct said. The case came to light after a buyer reported being scammed online. He only realized his ticket for the Saturday show was not real after the QR code would not scan, police said. The fake tickets, which Wei sold for NT$4,000 to NT$5,000, had numerous typos and incorrect information on them, police said, adding there were likely other suspects involved.
TRAFFIC
New bridge lane to open
The three southbound lanes on the Zhongzheng Bridge (中正橋), which is still under construction, would open to motorists at noon on Saturday, the Taipei City Government said. The bridge has been under construction since May 2019 to replace an older structure. Only two lanes on the southbound side of the bridge are currently open, allowing traffic from Taipei’s Zhongzheng District (中正) to New Taipei City’s Yonghe District (永和). However, the northbound lanes would not open until early next year, the Taipei New Construction Office said. In the meantime, motorists traveling from New Taipei City to Taipei can still use the old bridge, which was built by the Japanese in 1937 and was once called Kawabata Bridge, the office said.
SOCIETY
Riskiest online stores listed
The Criminal Investigation Bureau yesterday announced the “riskiest” marketplaces in the third quarter. The 7-Eleven online store placed first with 1,195 complaints, followed by Carousell with 720 complaints, Shopee with 550, Facebook Marketplace with 168 and the FamilyMart online store with 134. Scams targeting sellers on online marketplaces have been on the rise over the past few months, the bureau said, adding that fraudsters posing as buyers often contact the seller through Facebook Messenger or the platform’s chat function claiming to be unable to place an order, it said. They then send a phishing link or QR code impersonating customer service asking to “authenticate” their bank account by transferring money, it said. No marketplace staff would ask anyone to remit money as authentication, the bureau said, adding that people should never add suspicious Line accounts or click on suspicious links.
SOCIETY
Truck kills cyclist in Hualien
A 21-year-old unlicensed light truck driver early yesterday hit and killed a man on a bicycle after apparently falling asleep at the wheel on Provincial Highway No. 9 in Hualien’s Fuli Township (富里), local authorities said. The driver surnamed Ku (古) and a passenger surnamed Wang (王) had traveled to downtown Hualien in the early hours yesterday to make deliveries, Hualien police said. On the way back to Taitung, Ku fell asleep and the truck crossed the road divider and crashed into a storefront on the opposite side of the road, then hit a man on a bicycle and a traffic light, police said. Paramedics found the cyclist, a 51-year-old man surnamed Huang (黃), with serious head and limb injuries. He was pronounced dead at Yuli Tzu Chi Hospital at about 8am. Ku had scrapes on his arm, while Wang was unharmed. Ku passed a breath alcohol test, but did not have a driver’s license, police said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as
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