Gangster's 17-year sentence upheld in clerk's death after detention, assault

Taipei, Oct. 8 (CNA) The Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected an appeal and upheld a 17-year prison sentence for a gangster who detained, assaulted and robbed a convenience store clerk, who later jumped to his death from a 13th-floor balcony.

The ruling upheld the Taiwan High Court Tainan Branch Court verdict, which found the man, Liu Chia-yu (劉佳宥) guilty of aggravated armed robbery, assault, offenses against personal freedom, and involvement in organized crime.

The court also upheld the sentences of Liu's co-defendants, including Chen Yi-ling (陳羿伶), who received 12 years for assault, offenses against personal freedom and aggravated armed robbery, and Tseng Han-jen (曾漢仁), who received 14 years for assault, aggravated armed robbery, involvement in organized crime and injury resulting in death. Several other defendants were also convicted of similar offenses.

The ruling is final and cannot be appealed.

According to the verdict, Chen, who managed a convenience store in Tainan's Yongkang District, contacted Liu and her fiancé to confront a store clerk surnamed Ting (丁), whom she suspected of stealing money from the store.

Liu was a co-leader of a gang involved in violent debt collection, illegal detention and robbery, and had also recruited minors, according to the verdict.

On April 27, 2023, Chen and her co-defendants took Ting to the store's storage room for questioning. Liu, Tseng and others beat him with their hands, beer bottles and metal wrenches, causing injuries to his head, the court said.

When Ting attempted to flee, they detained him and continued beating him. They also forced him to sign a NT$1 million (US$31,324) cashier's check and a settlement agreement. Liu also forcibly took Ting's gold necklace.

Ting took four days off work before returning to the convenience store on May 2, when Chen called Liu and the others to the scene.

Early the next morning, Liu, Tseng and the other defendants took Ting to the storage room a second time, where they beat him with a plastic hose and forced him to kneel and remove his pants while threatening him with a machete, according to the verdict.

Ting then admitted to taking NT$200,000, prompting Liu to contact his mother to demand payment of the debt while posing as the store manager and the president of the convenience store chain. Liu also threatened to report the matter to police.

Ting's mother subsequently asked her sister-in-law to transfer NT$200,000 to Chen's account. Liu, however, instructed his accomplices not to release Ting, as they planned to take him to his home in Kaohsiung and continue extorting money from his family, the verdict said.

At around 11 a.m., Ting said he was feeling unwell and was allowed to return to his residence under the supervision of Tseng and a minor. When Tseng became frustrated with Ting's reluctance to leave his residence, he pressed a gun against Ting's waist and fired. The bullet penetrated his waist but did not hit any vital organs.

Believing he had no way to seek help, Ting jumped from a 13th-floor balcony at 12:14 p.m. He died from multiple fractures and ruptured organs, according to the verdict.

The court said Tseng should have foreseen that Ting was in a distressed mental state and might attempt to end his life after enduring further abuse, but failed to take appropriate action.

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