Taiwan Ciaotou District Prosecutors Office Press Release

Issue Date: June 14, 2024

Contributor: Chao-Ching Hsieh ,Deputy Chief Prosecutor

In March 2024, the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) reported intelligence on a transnational fraud case to this office. This offiec appointed Chief Prosecutor Hsieh Chang-Hsia and Prosecutor Chou Tzu-Chun to direct the investigation. This collaborative effort included the CIB’s Interpol Division, the Criminal Investigation Divisions of the Kaohsiung City Police Department, Taipei City Police Department, Pingtung County Police Department, and Penghu County Police Department, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Singapore Representative Office, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) of the Singapore Police Force, the Commercial Crime Investigation Department of the Royal Malaysia Police (CCID-RMP), and the Cyber Security and Technology Crime Bureau of the Hong Kong Police Force (CSTCB-HKPF).

The investigation revealed that individuals Xie OO and Tsai OO established a SpyMax-type Trojan software system hub within our borders. They recruited Wu OO and Chen OO to serve as customer service representatives for the Trojan software system. This customized Trojan software was provided to fraud syndicate operators. Other accomplices abroad were responsible for creating fake websites and posting Facebook ads. The fraud operators managed fake customer service lines, luring victims into downloading the Trojan software. Once installed,secondary operators controlled the victims’ mobile banking applications, transferring funds directly to dummy accounts. The syndicate members then converted the stolen funds into cryptocurrencies for distribution.

The acts of the accused, Xie OO and three others, were found to be in violation of the latter part of Article 3, Paragraph 1 of the Organized Crime Prevention Act, Article 358 of the Criminal Code (offenses against the use of computers), Article 339-4, Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 2 (aggravated fraud), and Article 14, Paragraph 1 of the Money Laundering Control Act.

On May 15, 2024, the prosecutors directed judicial police to conduct searches at eight locations in New Taipei City, Kaohsiung City, and Penghu County. During the operations, four individuals, including Xie OO, were arrested. Seized at the scene were 3,794 Tether coins, 5,206 Dogecoins, 1,293 Tron coins, encryption wallet seed phrases, Dominican pesos and various other foreign currencies, mobile phones, and computer equipment. Prosecutors also obtained court approval to freeze financial accounts and real estate assets related to the case, totaling NT$43,015,346.

Following interrogations, prosecutors found substantial evidence against the suspects Tsai OO, Chen OO, and Wu OO. However, determining that detention was unnecessary, they were released on bail of NT$100,000 each for Tsai OO and Chen OO, and NT$50,000 for Wu OO, with restrictions on travel and residence. Suspect Xie OO, due to the severity of the charges and the risk of flight and evidence tampering, was placed under court-approved detention with bail set at NT$250,000, along with travel and residence restrictions.

News No. 113061401