Taipei [Taiwan], August 18 : The Taoyuan District Prosecutors' Office announced on Saturday that they have indicted a Chinese national who unlawfully entered Taiwan with his son on a rubber boat in May, as reported by Central News Agency (CNA).
41-year-old Song has been charged with violating Taiwan's Immigration Act, while his 17-year-old son will be handled by the Juvenile Court, according to the office.
Moreover, the prosecutors have seized the equipment used for their journey and requested a harsher sentence for Song under the Protection of Children and Youths Welfare and Rights Act, which mandates that adults committing crimes alongside minors face a sentence enhancement of up to 50 per cent.
The indictment reveals that an investigation determined Song, a labourer from Yunnan Province, China, perceived Taiwan as "prosperous" and intended to bring his son, a hairdresser, to Taiwan for education.
On May 15, they set off for Taiwan around 6 am in an inflatable rubber boat equipped with an outboard motor, which they had acquired from a Chinese online marketplace, according to the indictment, as reported by CNA.
They departed from Yunnan and collected their boat in Fujian Province. Their journey began from Junshan Village on Pingtan Island, situated approximately 68 nautical miles from Taiwan, and they reached the beach near the Guantang LNG Terminal in the Guanyin District of Taoyuan at roughly 5:30 pm that same day, as detailed in the indictment. After arriving in Taiwan, they withdrew cash using a UnionPay card for their meal, but after depleting their funds, they surrendered at around 8 am the following day at the Guanyin police station in Taoyuan, which brought the situation to the authorities' attention, according to the indictment as cited by CNA.
Investigations by prosecutors and police were conducted to determine if there was any potential espionage intent, but they dismissed suspicions of spying or asserting Chinese sovereignty after both the father and son successfully passed polygraph examinations, as reported by CNA.
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