By KHT Staff
KAOHSIUNG — The Ciaotou District Court (橋頭地方法院) has extended the detention of a man charged in a fatal 2024 shooting in Kaohsiung by two months, finding that he remains a high flight risk, the Liberty Times reported Tuesday, Sept. 8.
The defendant, Yang Wei-yen (楊緯彥), is accused of killing Chen Hsu-hao (陳昫豪), a Pingtung man described in local reports as an underworld figure known by the nickname “Duck Head.” Yang’s current detention period was due to expire Sept. 15.
The court said Chen appeared to have considerable local influence and that Yang had acknowledged fearing retaliation against his family. Judges found that Yang could try to flee to avoid such retaliation as well as criminal and civil liability.
The court also cited the circumstances of the shooting and Yang’s access to firearms and ammunition. It said those factors suggested he may have prepared for the legal consequences of the case and could know how to evade authorities.
Prosecutors allege that Yang ambushed Chen near a tabletop-gaming venue on Minghua 1st Road (明華一路) in Zuoying District (左營區) at about 11:30 a.m. on Aug. 15, 2024. Chen was shot multiple times and died from his injuries.
Yang later went to a police station in Zuoying with two guns and ammunition. During questioning, he claimed the shooting arose from a dispute involving an NT$500,000 gambling debt, denied acting on another person’s instructions, and said the firearms came from an unidentified man.
The Ciaotou District Prosecutors Office (橋頭地檢署) indicted Yang on murder and firearms charges and asked the court to impose a severe sentence. The case remains before the district court.
The Central News Agency reported in March 2025 that the court had lifted Yang’s pretrial detention at that time because he had begun serving a prison sentence in a separate fraud case. The latest report did not state when detention in the murder case was reinstated.
Map: View Minghua 1st Road in Zuoying District on Google Maps
