Man detained for illegally helping Chinese influencer get Taiwan visa

Taipei, Aug. 1 (CNA) The Pingtung District Court on Friday approved the detention of the head of an e-commerce company in Pingtung County in a case in which he allegedly helped a Chinese social media influencer procure documents to enter Taiwan under false pretenses.

In filing a motion to detain the man, identified only by his surname Hsieh (謝), prosecutors argued they suspected Hsieh would be able to destroy evidence and collude with potential witnesses if he was not detained.

The Pingtung District Court subsequently approved to have prosecutors detain him and hold him incommunicado early Friday.

According to the Pingtung District Prosecutors Office, it received a tip indicating that a Tik Tok influencer from China had entered Taiwan on a business visa.

It alleged that the Chinese influencer entered Taiwan under false pretenses since he did not stick to the activities stated in his visa application.

A task force in charge of the case then procured a search warrant for a Pingtung company that was suspected of helping the influencer get his business visa for Taiwan.

An investigation found that Hsieh had been colluding with a company in China to apply for business visas for at least three Chinese individuals, including the influencer, using false information.

The process was fairly straightforward, according to prosecutors. Chinese nationals who wanted to enter Taiwan could pay between 5,500 Chinese yuan (US$763.84) and 5,800 yuan to a Chinese company for a fake employment letter.

Hsieh then prepared business itineraries, letters of guarantee, contracts and documents on the finances of his Taiwan company for the Chinese company.

The documents were then used by the Chinese side to apply for a visa with Taiwan's National Immigration Agency.

Pingtung prosecutors said the Chinese nationals who were able to get visas were found to have participated in activities in Taiwan that were different from those stated on their applications.

Such actions negatively affected Taiwan's immigration policies and posed potential threats to its national security, prosecutors alleged.

They suspect that Hsieh violated Taiwan's Criminal Code by conducting activities not in line with his company's business, and also violated Taiwan's Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area.

According to TaiwanADIZ, a Facebook page for military aficionados, the TikTok influencer's videos showed him traveling around Taiwan.

Specifically, the influencer's videos showed that the timeframe of his visit was during the Han Kuang military exercises initiated in northern parts of Taiwan.

TaiwanADIZ suggested that the timing of the influencer's videos and visit posed a threat to Taiwan's national security.