Yunlin ex-con detained after failed NT$5 million bank heist

Taipei, Oct. 27 (CNA) A recently released ex-convict was arrested and later detained after a failed attempt to steal NT$5 million (US$162,739) from a bank in Huwei Township, Yunlin County last Thursday by pretending to be armed, according to prosecutors and police.

The incident occurred on the afternoon of Oct. 23, when the suspect, a 30-year-old man surnamed Lin (林), walked into a downtown Huwei bank and pretended to make a withdrawal.

He then threw a burlap bag toward a teller and shouted, "Put NT$5 million in the bag or I'll shoot!" the Yunlin District Prosecutors Office said in a statement issued Monday.

However, a security guard realized that Lin did not appear to be carrying a weapon, despite keeping one hand inside his jacket as if holding a gun. The guard rushed forward to stop Lin, but after a brief struggle the would-be bank robber broke free and fled the scene, escaping in a taxi waiting outside.

Police from Huwei Precinct immediately launched an investigation and, after reviewing security footage, identified the suspect as Lin, who has previous convictions for drug-related offenses and had recently been released from prison.

After reporting the case to prosecutors, officers located and arrested Lin later that evening at a rented residence in Lunbei Township, seizing the burlap bag used during the attempted robbery but finding no firearm, according to the statement.

Lin initially denied the allegations, claiming he had gone to the bank to withdraw money, but later confessed to staging the attempted robbery because he was short on cash, after police confronted him with evidence.

Police said Lin, a Yunlin native, took a taxi from neighboring Changhua County, where he was living with his girlfriend, to commit the crime.

Prosecutors charged Lin with attempted robbery, adding that he posed a flight risk and could interfere with witness testimony. The Yunlin District Court later approved a request to detain him incommunicado.