Shots Fired in Taipei City Two Times in One Night
Police in Taipei City are investigating two incidents where shots were fired in Taipei City last night, and seven suspects have been taken in for questioning.
At around 11:00pm last night one shot was fired in an alley off Anhe Road, then at around 3:00am, 20 people armed with sticks and bats clamored in the car park of the Mortuary Service Office Second Funeral Parlor on Xinhai Road. More than ten shots were fired, at least one of which hit a passing car, according to media reports, but fortunately there were no casualties.
According to a China Times report, a comparison of bullet casings found at the two scenes suggests the same gun or guns were used in both incidents.
Both crime scenes fall under the jurisdiction of the Da’an Police Precinct. Da’an Police refused to provide details of the case to reporters this morning while the case was under investigation.
A 19 year-old man turned himself into police this morning and claimed that he had fired the shots. A modified pistol and two bullets were recovered from his rented apartment. By midday, another 6 people had been taken in for questioning.
While many media reports speculated that the shootings could be related to debt collection, Apple Daily claimed to have informed sources who say the incidents are related to the sale of a piece of land next to the funeral parlor. Apple sources say that the Lungyen Group, a private funeral services company, made an offer of NT$900 million for the land, but the owner is asking NT$1.1 billion.
According to the Apple Daily reports, the land was the site of a ‘private dining hall’ involving the Heavenly Way gang, until the Taipei City Government condemned the site as an illegal construction in 2015. The reports suggest that the gang is attempting to get a cut in the land deal.
However, TVBS this afternoon reported that Da’an District police said that they found no evidence that the shootings were related to a land deal, and are treating the case as a simple debt dispute involving a gambling debt based on bets placed during the World Cup.
Taipei City Mayor Ko Wen-je attended a Q&A session at the Taipei City Council this afternoon where he was questioned about the law and order situation in Taipei City. The mayor and police commissioner attempted to assure councilors that last night’s incidents were sporadic cases, and isolated incidents, and that the police had responded quickly. The ability of the police to deal with cases within hours, not days, had an important deterrent effect.
Taipei City Police Commissioner Chen Jia-Chang said that statistics show that crime rates in Taipei City are gradually going down.
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