Taiwan’s first electronic storage device detection dog (K9 ESD), Wafer, has helped in three major crime cases, the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) said yesterday at a news conference in Taipei, which also marked Wafer’s first public appearance.
Since arriving in Taiwan in August last year, Wafer has found hidden devices belonging to the main suspect in a methamphetamine bust and helped investigations into election gambling, scam and money laundering cases, the CIB said.
A K9 ESD is trained to sniff out the chemical substance triphenylphosphine oxide (TPPO), which is found in electronic storage devices such as cellphones, hard drives, flash drives or cold wallets for cryptocurrency that might contain illegal content and evidence of criminal activity, the CIB said.
Photo: CNA
Wafer reacts to confirm the locations of storage devices at investigation sites, the CIB said, adding that since its arrival, the sniffer dog has helped police find cellphones and tablets hidden in bedside cabinets and closets by crime ring members.
Wafer was donated to Taiwanese police force by the US-based nonprofit organization Operation Underground Railroad (OUR), which fights human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
OUR Asian division vice chair Nate Davis said new forms of crime require police to adopt new equipment and approaches, and Wafer can help detect electronic devices, giving investigators access to any criminal information stored on them.
CIB International Criminal Affairs Division researcher Lee Kun-ta (李昆達) said officers at the National Police Agency’s Third Special Police Corps underwent training in the US after coordinating with US Department of Homeland Security investigators and the OUR in July last year.
Wafer was brought to Taiwan to support law enforcement in the following month.
Davis told the press that the OUR donated a K9 ESD to Taiwan because the country works hard to fight human trafficking.
Wafer was named as a nod to Taiwan’s semiconductor industry, he added.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
A woman who allegedly attacked a high-school student with a utility knife, injuring his face, on a Taipei metro train late on Friday has been transferred to prosecutors, police said yesterday. The incident occurred near MRT Xinpu Station at about 10:17pm on a Bannan Line train headed toward Dingpu, New Taipei City police said. Before police arrived at the station to arrest the suspect, a woman surnamed Wang (王) who is in her early 40s, she had already been subdued by four male passengers, one of whom was an off-duty Taipei police officer, police said. The student, 17, who sustained a cut about
RSS