Man detained after daughter seen in public with vulgar sign

Taipei, Sept. 30 (CNA) The New Taipei District Court on Wednesday ordered a man detained incommunicado for allegedly violating a protection order after his daughter was seen in Sanchong District in New Taipei with a sign with vulgar wording hanging from her neck.

In a statement Tuesday, the New Taipei District Prosecutors Office said it requested that the man be detained because he was suspected of assault, coercion, endangering a juvenile's development, and violating a protection order.

It also said the evidence raised concerns that the man could commit similar offenses or collude with witnesses, according to the statement.

The prosecutors office's statement did not provide many other details, however, including what specifically the father allegedly did, how the daughter came to be wearing the sign, and what restrictions were in the protection order against him.

The case came to light Monday after a member of the public posted on Threads about a girl wearing a paper sign bearing her name and vulgar words including "thief" and "bastard" (畜生).

According to the post, the girl appeared dazed and had injuries on her face and arms, and two people, believed to be family members, were seen urging her toward more crowded areas while recording the incident on their mobile phones.

Police subsequently found that the girl's father may have violated a protection order against him and arrested him, Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) official Huang Jui-wen (黃瑞雯) said Tuesday.

The girl was placed in protective care following the incident, Huang said.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, MOHW Department of Protective Services Director-General Kuo Tsai-jung (郭彩榕) said the New Taipei City Social Welfare Department had already opened a case involving the girl and would take appropriate measures in response to the latest incident.

The city's Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Prevention Center had also applied for a protection order for the girl, Kuo said.

Asked why the girl had not been placed in protective care earlier despite the existence of a protection order, Kuo explained that such orders can contain various provisions that would have still allowed the man and daughter to live together.

She also did not divulge, however, what specifically was in the protection order involving the man.

Kuo did say that violating a protection order is a criminal offense that requires police intervention and can carry a prison sentence of up to three years.