Suspect in police officer death turned over to prosecutors

New Taipei, Oct. 1 (CNA) A woman who fatally dragged a police officer holding on to the side of her car into a fence while trying to evade a roadside check was handed over to prosecutors on Tuesday, New Taipei police said.

According to police, the suspect, surnamed Chen (陳), was turned over to the New Taipei District Prosecutors Office for further investigation into possible homicide, drug use, and obstruction of official duties charges.

Police said Chen was arrested at her friend's residence at 1 a.m. along with two friends after fleeing the scene of the incident, noting that they found amphetamines, etomidate, and vape cartridges in her possession.

The 30-year-old Chen dragged Liu Tsung-hsin (劉宗鑫), head of the Chingshui Police Station in Tucheng Precinct, about 500 meters near the New Taipei District Court at high speed before ramming him into fences lining a construction site.

The 38-year-old Liu was critically injured and pronounced dead after being taken to nearby Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, while Chen fled the scene on foot, police said.

According to police, Liu took an interest in Chen's vehicle at 11 p.m. on Monday, suspecting that it was illegally parked, and attempted to conduct a roadside check.

During the process, Liu discovered that the car was not properly registered and suspected Chen of possessing drugs, prompting him to ask her to step out of the vehicle.

Chen refused to comply, however, and tried to drive away. Liu grabbed hold of the steering wheel in an attempt to stop the car, but Chen accelerated, trying to shake him off, and eventually steered the left side of the car into the fences, injuring Liu, police said.

It remains unclear whether she was driving under the influence of drugs.

According to sources, Chen had a prior drug offense.