Mountain Poachers Steal Valuable Timber, 3 Suspects Arrested After Crashing into Police Car and Detained

The 5th Brigade of the Seventh Peace Preservation Corps today announced via press release that on January 3rd this year, they received intelligence from the Taichung Branch of the Ministry of Agriculture's Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency regarding illegal individuals entering the No. 15 forest compartment of the Baxianshan business area via the Dasyueshan Forest Road to poach valuable Taiwanese cypress. The Taichung District Prosecutors Office immediately formed a special task force to investigate. After task force members surveyed the poaching site and collected evidence, they found abandoned chainsaws, hand saws, and other stolen items.

Police reviewed surveillance footage and utilized technological investigation to identify the suspect vehicle. At approximately 5 AM on January 4th, an interception and encirclement operation was carried out at the 5-kilometer mark of the Dasyueshan Forest Road. The suspects' vehicle attempted to flee and collided with a police car, causing abrasions to an officer's knee during the arrest. After officers' strenuous efforts to subdue them, and with the prompt assistance of the Heping Precinct of the Taichung City Police Bureau, the scene was quickly brought under control. Three suspects, including a man surnamed Wu, were apprehended on the spot, and stolen Taiwanese cypress timber, chainsaws, carrying frames, and the suspect vehicle were seized as evidence.

Police indicated that a preliminary inventory of the poached Taiwanese cypress timber weighed over 3,800 kilograms, with a market value of approximately NT$680,000. After interrogation by the prosecutor, the three suspects, including Mr. Wu, were deemed to pose a risk of flight, destruction of evidence, collusion, and repeated offenses, and their detention with restricted communication was approved by the court.

The 5th Brigade of the Seventh Peace Preservation Corps stated that the special task force continued to trace the flow of other stolen goods. They discovered that the suspects transported the poached Taiwanese cypress timber to the Miaoli area for fencing. In February, a search warrant was executed at the receiving location, where 17 pieces of national valuable timber, including Chinese cedar, red cypress, and cypress, totaling approximately 513.5 kilograms, were seized. The suspect surnamed Chen, responsible for receiving the stolen goods, was also arrested and transferred to the Taichung District Prosecutors Office for investigation on charges of violating the Forestry Act and other offenses. The case is still under expanded investigation. (Edited by Lin Shu-hui) 1150408