The Shilin District Court yesterday approved a request by Taipei prosecutors to detain and hold incommunicado a Chinese national who recently entered Taiwan illegally after driving a speedboat from China to the Tamsui River mouth.
The suspect, identified as a 60-year-old man surnamed Ruan (阮), was ordered detained due to the risk that he could destroy evidence or try to flee from authorities as he is in Taiwan illegally and has no domicile in the country, the court said in a statement.
Ruan is being investigated on suspicion of violating the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) and the Immigration Act (入出國及移民法) after he drove a 9-meter-long speedboat into a harbor near the mouth of the Tamsui River (淡水河) in New Taipei City on June 9.
Photo couresy of the Coast Guard Administration via CNA
After his arrest by Taiwan Coast Guard personnel, the suspect claimed he was trying to defect to Taiwan from China.
An unnamed source familiar with the incident told local media that Ruan has claimed he wants to defect because he had made some anti-Chinese government comments on online messaging apps.
Following questioning by Shilin District Prosecutors Office, a request was filed yesterday morning to detain Ruan and hold him incommunicado due to the severity of the case involving national security.
Prosecutors are continuing with their investigation to clarify the details relating to Ruan’s illegal entry, the Shilin court said, indicating detention is necessary.
The incident has drawn attention from media and military experts because the Tamsui River is considered a critical strategic location and serves as the gateway to Taipei, the nation’s political, economic and cultural capital, where the Presidential Office and other important government institutions are situated.
SCENARIOS: A potential conflict with Beijing would not be similar to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and China would target energy and food supplies, a researcher said China is likely to continue using economic and cyberoperations against Taiwan to force it to capitulate without resorting to a military attack, Fox News reported yesterday, citing the outcome of a tabletop exercise. Washington-based think tank the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) earlier this month held a tabletop exercise in Taipei focusing on Beijing’s use of economic and cybercoercion against Taiwan. The FDD mentioned an “anaconda strategy,” in which Beijing would likely use cyberwarfare and disinformation campaigns followed by a blockade or other measures to strangulate Taiwan, rather than attempting an invasion, the report said. A large-scale cyberattack would be
HSINCHU CASES: Five people among 35 who were reported being sick were still in hospital after eating at a vendor in a market in Jhubei, the local health agency said Thirty-five people have sought medical treatment for acute symptoms after allegedly eating banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches) from a vendor in Jhubei City (竹北), the Hsinchu County Public Health Bureau said yesterday. The bureau said that since Saturday, it has received several reports of suspected food poisoning from hospitals. The vendor has been ordered to temporarily suspend its business, it said, adding that tests were being conducted to determine whether the people had food poisoning, with results expected in about two weeks. A preliminary investigation showed that the people who sought treatment had recently eaten banh mi at a vendor at a retail market
GOOD MODEL: Speaking at his book launch, Law said that Taiwan is the most democratic Chinese-speaking country, which is why Hong Kongers relocated here China has suffocated Hong Kong’s civil society and its next target could be Taiwan, Nathan Law (羅冠聰), cofounder of the disbanded pro-democracy Hong Kong political party Demosisto, said in Taipei yesterday. Law made the remarks at a launch in Taipei for his book When the Wind Blows — the Struggles for Freedom of Hong Kong (時代推著我們前行:羅冠聰的香港備忘錄). Law has been living in the UK since he fled Hong Kong in 2020, and the book is about his fighting for the cause of freedom in the area. He was granted political asylum in 2021. “Fleeing is a long and distressing process, but it also
IMITATING OTHERS? Tsai Ing-wen’s office said the former president rents a commercial unit for her personal office and had never used election funds to purchase real estate Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday confirmed that he used about NT$43 million (US$1.35 million) from his presidential election subsidy to purchase an office unit near the Legislative Yuan in May. Ko made the remarks after Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) earlier in the day told a news conference that she received a tip-off that the TPP chairman had purchased a 48.76 ping (161.2m2) office unit at Jinan Building (濟南大樓), a commercial building in Taipei’s Zhongzheng District (中正). Lin said that Ko purchased the unit on May 10, paying about NT$43 million in cash,