Suspect ordered detained for attack on 3-year-old Filipino child

Taipei, April 26 (CNA) The Taipei District Court has approved the detention by prosecutors of a Taiwanese man for allegedly attacking a 3-year-old Filipino girl at Taipei Main Station on Saturday.

In the ruling issued Sunday afternoon, the court granted a detention request by prosecutors citing the man's suspected involvement in an assault, as well as his risk of re-offending or trying to flee.

The suspect, a man in his 40s surnamed Lee (李), was apprehended Saturday afternoon outside the station after being identified by several witnesses of the attack.

After his arrest, Lee told police that he targeted the girl because she was making noise, according to police.

The Railway Police Bureau's Taipei Precinct said it received a report at 2:25 p.m. Saturday about an assault in the station's lobby.

First responders found the child conscious but with swelling on her face and limbs. She was taken to National Taiwan University Hospital for treatment, police said.

The suspect was referred to the Taipei District Prosecutors Office to be investigated for attempted murder, police said.

Surveillance footage showed a man kicking the 3-year-old Filipino girl in the abdomen in the station's main hall.

When interviewed later that night, the girl's father said he was still shaken by the incident, which occurred on the first day of a planned 5-day visit to Taiwan.

He said the attack was so sudden that neither he nor bystanders could react in time, though his wife managed to push the man away.

He said passersby helped call the police, and that his daughter's condition was stable despite her injuries.

Meanwhile, a separate witness told local media that Lee had also kicked a homeless person lying nearby prior to the attack on the child.

On Sunday, railway police said they had stepped up security measures at the station, including increasing patrols and forming a task force of station staff and security personnel to approach individuals engaging in disruptive behavior and ask them to stop or leave during designated hours.

Police also urged Taiwan Railway Corp. to recruit additional station security personnel to work alongside officers and staff to strengthen overall safety.