Police shoot, kill driver after he refused to stopPolice officers fired a total of 49 shots at a sedan on Sunday morning during a car chase in downtown Taipei, which started when the driver refused to stop his vehicle on the request of the police.
The 42-year-old driver, Chung Chang-hai, suffered five shots -- three hitting his legs and two entering his belly. He died before the ambulance was able to bring him to Ho Ping Hospital, police noted.
Hsueh Ching-lien, the chief of the Wan-hun Police District under the Taipei City Police Department, said that its office is investigating whether or not police officers followed the law enforcement rules while chasing Chung.
According to the city police department, the Wen-shan Second Police District Saturday night received a piece of confidential information claiming that there were firearms hidden in a particular car. The tip led to a surveillance and ambush operation on Kangding Road in Wan Hua District by the police district in cooperation with Wan-hua Police District.
Policemen spotted a "questionable" black sedan and followed it all the way to the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall area, where the police signaled for the driver to stop the car, according to the police.
As the police slowed down, the driver unexpectedly sped away, so a policeman fired two warning shots, the city police department noted. Police officers chased the sedan from the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall area all the way to Banqiao City in Taipei County and back to the Wan Hua District, firing a total of 49 shots along the way. The car finally stopped in the Wan Hua District, where TV footage showed the black sedan ridden with holes, and its tired busted.
However, police found no firearms in the car, and confirmed that Chung was not an escaped suspect, although he had previously been charged with burglary and drug trafficking.
The city police department is investigating into the reason why Chung refused to comply with the police's request to stop his car.
The police also suspected that Chung might have hidden the firearms somewhere else, or that the Wen-shan Police District might have just received the wrong information.
Local TV station Formosa TV reported that Chung, dressed in red, was probably a supporter of the anti-corruption campaign launched by former Democratic Progressive Party Chairman Shih Ming-teh (施明德) to depose President Chen Shui-bain. The TV station speculated that he may have driven to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall to participate in the rally, and was shot to death when he refused to be interrogated by the police. Formosa TV also claimed that police found glue on Chung.
However, Ho De-fen, the main organizer of the anti-Chen's campaign, stressed that the supporters of the anti-graft camp are rational people filled with passion, not violence. He emphasized that the incident was absolutely not linked to the anti-corruption camp.
Source:Taiwan News(2006/09/18 10:18:24)
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