Five indicted over China-linked attack on comedian

CALL TO ACTION: Huang Yi-hao thanked investigators, while urging Fu Kun-chi to support legislation protecting Taiwanese from politically motivated violence

• By Hollie Younger / Staff writer, with CNA

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Five Taiwanese men have been indicted for hitting comedian Huang Yi-hao (黃逸豪) with a car last month in an alleged act of transnational repression, after the entertainer made comments critical of the Chinese Communist Party.

In its indictment released yesterday, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said a Chinese national, identified by the nickname “K,” offered a Taiwanese man, surnamed Cheng (鄭), NT$450,000 to seriously injure Huang so he could not give a scheduled performance on Sept. 20.

Huang was hit by the vehicle near his home in New Taipei City on Sept. 11.

Comedian Huang Yi-hao speaks to reporters in an undated photograph.

Photo courtesy of a Liberty Times reader

The five suspects have been indicted on charges including attempted grievous bodily harm under the Criminal Code and contravening the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法), the office said.

Prosecutors said they are seeking a minimum sentence of five-and-a-half years for the primary suspect, describing the alleged offenses as showing a disregard for human life, while also posing a threat to national security and social stability.

In a separate attack on May 29, two men threw a mixture of paint and human feces at the Comedy Club (卡米地) in Taipei, where Huang in December last year made comments mocking Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a performance.

The two men were indicted on charges including intimidation and property damage.

Between July and August, Cheng installed a GPS tracker on Huang’s scooter to monitor his whereabouts and record his daily routine, and found Huang’s home address and vehicle registration number, prosecutors said.

Cheng passed this information along to K in exchange for an advance payment of NT$250,000, they said.

He then conspired with a man surnamed Yu (游) to stage a traffic collision and another man surnamed Huang (黃) to purchase the vehicle and carry out the attack, prosecutors said.

Two other men, surnamed Fan (范) and Liao (廖), were also recruited to help in the attack, they said.

Liao filmed the attack from the front passenger seat as evidence for payment, they said.

Suspect Huang attempted to stop the attack after hearing Huang Yi-hao scream, although the comedian still sustained a contusion to his right pelvis, they said.

After the attack, the group obtained a medical certificate with Huang Yi-hao’s personal information, including his name, date of birth and national identification number, under the pretext of helping him apply for traffic accident compensation, prosecutors said.

They photographed that document and sent it to K, although he was allegedly dissatisfied that Huang Yi-hao had only sustained minor injuries and refused to pay the remaining NT$200,000, they said.

Prosecutors are seeking prison sentences of at least five years and six months for Cheng, five years for Yu, four years for Huang, three years and six months for Fan and two years and seven months for Liao.

The prosecutors urged the court to impose severe sentences as a deterrent to others.

Huang Yi-hao yesterday thanked investigators and police in a post on Facebook.

“I simply mocked Xi Jinping for two-and-a-half minutes on a stage in Taiwan, and was subsequently targeted in a feces-splashing attack and a deliberate vehicle collision,” he wrote.

Huang Yi-hao, who is from Hualien County, urged Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁), who represents Hualien, to support legislation protecting Taiwanese from politically motivated violence and show that he supports freedom of speech.

The Mainland Affairs Council condemned the attack, saying it would hold anyone involved accountable and bolster measures to protect Taiwanese from intimidation and violence by foreign hostile forces.