TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Prosecutors in Yilan have dismantled a timber poaching ring that illegally harvested and concealed valuable driftwood along the Lanyang River, seizing 143 pieces of timber and indicting 18 people on charges including timber poaching, extortion, and unlawful detention, per CNA.
The Yilan District Prosecutors Office said Friday that two men, surnamed Liu (劉) and Hsieh (謝), were the ringleaders. Prosecutors said the pair obtained riverbed land-use permits under assumed names from the Water Resources Agency, claiming the land would be used to plant watermelons along the Lanyang River near Provincial Highway 7A.
Although a small plot of watermelon seedlings was planted to maintain the appearance of legitimacy, prosecutors said the group’s true purpose was to exploit river access to search for valuable driftwood.
Investigators said the group collected driftwood, including Taiwan red cypress, and buried it within the permitted farming area to avoid detection. Prosecutors said the timber was to be dug up later and sold for profit.
Prosecutors said Liu and Hsieh hired a man surnamed Shih (石) to operate an excavator used to bury the driftwood. When officials from the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency’s Yilan Branch attempted to inspect the site, Liu and Hsieh allegedly blocked the investigation, claiming they held a valid lease to operate in the riverbed.
Prosecutors said Liu and Hsieh later suspected some of the buried driftwood had gone missing and summoned six people to confront Shih.
Shih was allegedly taken to a location in Yilan City, where he was beaten and accused of stealing. The group demanded NT$360,000 (US$11,400) in compensation, prosecutors said. Shih maintained his innocence and was released only after agreeing to sign a promissory note for NT$176,000.
After his release, Shih reported the incident to the Criminal Investigation Bureau, which alerted the Yilan District Prosecutors Office. Suspecting an organized criminal group, prosecutors coordinated with police and the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency to launch a joint investigation in September.
A special task force comprising prosecutors, police, forestry officials, and technical experts conducted arrests and searches across the Lanyang River basin. Authorities recovered and identified 143 pieces of illegally obtained timber weighing about 17 metric tons, with an estimated market value exceeding NT$5 million.
Prosecutors said all 18 suspects, including Liu and Hsieh, were indicted on charges ranging from illegal appropriation of driftwood to unlawful detention and extortion.
