Prosecutors drop charges against Taiwanese man accused of sexually assaulting French exchange student

April 9, 2019April 9, 2019 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment Hsinchu County

A 40-year-old man accused by a 17-year-old French girl of using his position of power and influence to entice her into a sex act, had charges against him dropped after prosecutors decided the relationship was probably consensual. Local media reports say that a hearing was held by Hsinchu District Prosecutors yesterday, April 8. It appears from the reports that the alleged victim was not present at the hearing, and that evidence was presented from statements made to police, and the

fire at chemical plant in Yunlin County, Taiwan, April 7, 2019

Breaking News

April 7, 2019April 7, 2019 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment explosion, factory fire, Formosa Plastics Group, Yunlin County

An explosion at a chemical plant in an industrial zone in Yunlin county shattered glass in buildings up to two kilometers away, shook houses five kilometers away, and was heard more than 30 kilometers away, according to media reports, today, April 7. Fortunately, there were no human casualties. The explosion occurred at 2:04pm at the Formosa Plastics Group Taihua aromatics plant, at the petrochemical conglomerate’s refinery complex in the Mailiao Industrial Park, and was followed by an intense fire emitting

Health and Safety

April 5, 2019April 5, 2019 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment dangerous driving, Nantou County, tour-bus

The driver of a tour bus will face a fine of between NT$600 and NT$1,800 (US$16 – US$58), after a overtaking over double-yellow lines on a blind bend in a mountain district of Nantou County two days ago. The driver, who caught the act on dash-cam, was forced to brake hard, and swerve her car into the guardrail to avoid a head-on collision with the tour bus. Shortly before 2:00pm on Wednesday, April 3, Ms Zhong was driving on Provincial

Animals

April 3, 2019April 3, 2019 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment animal protection, Chiayi County, cruelty-to-animals, stray dog

Police and animal protection workers responded quickly after a video shot by a student showed a farmer violently kicking a young dog wandering in a rice paddy in Chiayi County this morning, April 3. The thirty-second video showed the farmer, in Puzi City, chasing the dog with a stick, and kicking it several times. Two kicks resulted in the small, black dog flying into the air like a football. The student who filmed the incident while on the way to

Stupid Stuff

April 2, 2019April 2, 2019 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment claw machine, Tainan City

A man in Tainan city was stuck in an awkward position after putting his arm into a claw machine, in an attempt to grab a stuffed toy that fell into the hatch, but didn’t make it all the way down, Sunday evening. The man, named Du, successfully clipped a large, stuffed, Snoopy doll, and managed to maneuver it into the top of the hatch, but it failed to fall all the way into the retrieval bay. Mr Du called the

Society

April 2, 2019December 8, 2021 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment sexual harassment, Tainan City

A man of Canadian nationality was arrested in Tainan City in the early hours of the morning today, after shoving a police officer responding to reports that the man was hitting a parked car with a motorcycle helmet, according to reports in Liberty Times, and United Daily News. The 46-year-old man was reported to police after allegedly harassing a female convenience store clerk on March 31, and April 1. Police responded to reports several times, and twice brought the man,

Aviation

April 2, 2019April 2, 2019 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment Hualien County, paragliding accident, suhua highway

Two paragliders survived unscathed after landing on the Suhua Highway in Hualien County today, and police said that the paragliding operator may be liable to a fine of NT$300 (US$9.74). At around noon today, the paraglider came down and missed the landing area situated just 30 meters from the road in Xincheng Township. Motorists on the 4 lane section of highway were fortunately stopped at a red light at the time. The landing was caught on at least one vehicle’s

Lamborghini destroyed after accident in Taiwan

Traffic Accidents

March 31, 2019March 31, 2019 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment lamborghini, Pingtung County, truck-accident

Two people were injured after the driver of a Lamborghini crossed over the double yellow center line on a highway in southern Taiwan, and crashed head-on into a fuel tanker. At around 8:00am this morning, March 31, the driver of a brand-new Lamborghini, recently imported into Taiwan, and still bearing temporary license plates, crossed the center line on a blind bend on Provincial Highway 9 in Pingtung County. The Lamborghini hit a China Petroleum Company (CPC) tanker head-on, causing the

Politics

March 30, 2019March 30, 2019 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment Czech, international-relations, Prague

The Mayor of Prague visited Taipei this week, and China responded by pressuring the Czech Republic to expel Taiwan’s representative from an economic meeting held in the country. Prague’s mayor, Zdeněk Hřib, was in Taipei from March 26 to March 29 to attend the Smart City Summit and Expo. During his visit, Hřib met with Taipei City Mayor Ko Wen-je, and noted that since his last stay, 14 years ago, both Taipei and Prague had changed a lot, but both cities

man lays in ravine next to mattress that broke his fall

Traffic Accidents

March 28, 2019March 28, 2019 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment Chiayi County, miraculous survival, motorcycle accident

A 19-year-old man crashed into the guardrail of a bridge after losing control of his motorcycle on a mountain road in Chiayi County yesterday, and plunged 15 meters into a boulder-strewn stream bed below. Fortunately, the man landed on a discarded mattress, and survived the fall with only minor injuries, including a busted knee, and a mild concussion. At around 5:00pm, Mr Cheng (程 ), 19, was riding a heavy motorcycle on Provincial Highway 3 (Inner Mountain Highway), in Chiayi

A suspect is paraded in front of media after

Society

March 28, 2019March 28, 2019 Phillip Charlier 0 Comment abandoned baby, foreign workers, New Taipei City

Police arrested a 20-year-old Vietnamese national today after identifying her as the mother of a newborn baby found abandoned on a sidewalk in New Taipei City earlier today, March 27. Police made the arrest in Banqiao District at around noon, after a 12-hour investigation, that included tracing the suspect via traffic monitor footage, and using information printed on the cardboard box the baby was found in. Ms Ruan (阮), according to media reports, worked for an electronics company as a

Prosecutors drop charges against Taiwanese man accused of sexually assaulting French exchange student

Chemical plant explosion rocks southern Taiwan, heard more than 30 kilometers away

Bus driver to face small fine after dangerous overtaking maneuver

Dog rescued, farmer faces fine, after stray dog kicked like a football

Man gets stuck after putting arm in claw machine

Canadian arrested in Tainan after damaging car and shoving police officer

Paraglider to be fined NT$300 after landing on Highway

Lamborghini, fuel tanker destroyed: drivers survive head on collision

The Mayor of Prague is a friend of Taiwan, and it irritates China’s authoritarian Regime

Motorcyclist survives crash and fall into 15-meter-deep ravine after landing on dumped mattress

Mother of abandoned newborn identified and arrested