TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A sting operation by the Seventh Special Police Corps and Miaoli police on Wednesday caught seven timber poachers.
The head of the group, a man surnamed Chou (周), poached valuable timber near Taichung’s Daan River. The Forestry and Nature Conservation Administration notified police at the beginning of the year that forest rangers had detected suspicious activities during patrols, per CNA.
This included the cutting of precious trees in the forest and the removal of rare hardwoods. Forestry staff and police formed a task force to track the illegal logging operation.
Through surveillance cameras, they collected valuable data such as license plates, which led them to the chief suspect.
Chou enlisted members from Taichung and Miaoli who were familiar with the logging site. If group members encountered a forestry patrol, they would pretend to be hunting in the mountains.
Their target was valuable state-owned cypress and other precious tree species. The rare timber was later sold to traffickers.
One middleman, surnamed Lin (林), was involved in purchasing poached timber for several years, turning it into essential oil and finished wood products. The task force received a warrant to search and seize one vehicle in the case and precious hardwoods such as cypress, camphor, and Taiwan incense-cedar, with a total weight of 212 kilograms.
After the raid, all seven suspects, including Chou, were transferred to the Miaoli District Prosecutor's Office for investigation. The group will be charged based on the suspicion of theft and stolen goods under the Forestry Act and the Criminal Act.
The Seventh Special Police Corps said that forests are precious assets to be shared by all people. Those who destroy mountain forests are subject to a one to seven-year prison sentence, according to Article 52 of the Forestry Act. Those who illegally cut down valuable trees will be fined between NT$1 million (US$30,500) and NT$20 million.
