Sanchong Triple Homicide: Defendant Voices No Objection to Extended Detention in Second-Instance Trial

(CNA Reporter Liu Shih-Yi, Taipei, 20th) In the Sanchong triple homicide case in New Taipei, a man surnamed Chang, who killed his wife, mother-in-law, and stepson, was sentenced to death in the first trial by a citizen judge court. The case is now under review in the second instance. Because his detention period was nearing its end, he was summoned to court today, where Chang stated he had no objection to an extended detention. Chang's detention period is set to expire at the end of May. Regarding the necessity of extending his detention, the Taiwan High Court, handling the second-instance trial, held an inquiry hearing today. Chang stated he had no objections. The judge announced that the decision on whether to extend the detention will be made after further deliberation. The case began when Chang, born in 2000, was accused of successively suffocating his sleeping wife (Ms. Chen), his 69-year-old mother-in-law (Ms. Liu), and his 3-year-old stepson at their residence in Sanchong District, New Taipei City, between the evening of April 30 and the early morning of May 2, 2024. After the crime, Chang wrapped the three bodies in bedsheets, then stole his mother-in-law's passbook, credit cards, and valuables from a safe, and fraudulently withdrew deposits to upgrade his membership on a dating website and buy gambling credits. After living with the bodies for six days, Chang fled with his wife's Pomeranian dog 'Nuomi' to a hotel in Taichung on May 6 of the same year, where he forged his father's name at check-in to conceal his identity. Police arrested Chang in Taichung on May 12 of the same year. Prosecutors concluded their investigation and indicted him on charges including murder. The first-instance trial at the New Taipei District Court's citizen judge court, in a verdict announced last September, determined that Chang's actions constituted premeditated serial murder and that he had employed inhuman and extremely cruel methods against the victims. When killing his stepson, he tortured the child for several tens of minutes, which could be described as 'torture-killing,' showing a complete disregard for human life. The first-instance court found that Chang's actions met the criteria for the most serious crimes and sentenced him to death and lifelong deprivation of civil rights for two counts of murder and one count of an adult intentionally killing a child. This case is the first to result in a death penalty verdict from a citizen judge court. After an appeal, it is now being heard by the High Court in the second instance. (Editor: Lin Shu-hui) 1150520