Accused fraudsters from Taiwan confess

A total of 32 suspected telecom fraudsters from Taiwan, who are currently detained on the Chinese mainland, have confessed to their crimes, the Ministry of Public Security said on Saturday.

They were being held at two detention centers in Zhuhai, Guangdong province.

Sixty-five suspects from the mainland and the 32 from Taiwan were deported by Malaysia to the mainland last month. They belonged to five criminal syndicates, according to a ministry statement issued after mainland police and a delegation of judicial officials from Taiwan wrapped up a three-day meeting in Zhuhai.

They were among 117 suspects detained in Malaysia. The other 20 suspects from Taiwan had been sent back to the island earlier.

The police ensured that the suspects' legal rights were protected, the statement said.

At Saturday's meeting, mainland police agreed to arrange family visits as soon as possible, the statement said.

Cooperation sought

Police from the mainland have gathered key information about four of the alleged syndicates. But the investigation into the fifth encountered difficulties because most of its members had been sent back to Taiwan, the police said.

The 20 suspects who were returned to the island were initially released by Taiwan police, citing lack of evidence, in mid-April. But five days later 18 of them were detained, and two were banned from traveling.

Authorities on the Chinese mainland "will try to provide evidence to the Taiwan side so that they can crack the case as quickly as possible", said Chen Shiqu, a senior police officer at the ministry. "The money of mainland victims is in Taiwan. We hope the Taiwan side can actively pursue the scammed money so that we can return the money to the victims."

Chen Wen-chi, who led the Taiwan delegation, confirmed that prosecutors in Taichung have been busy investigating the case, and that evidence from the mainland will be helpful.

A few victims were in Zhuhai to petition the Taiwan delegation for better cooperation.

A 72-year-old Beijing woman surnamed Guo said the scam took money she needed for cancer treatment. She said she was cheated out of about 2 million yuan ($307,000) in August and September.

"I just hope those crooks will be punished so no more people will be cheated," she said.