An internationally recognized fraud haven in Taiwan has been hit again: Greek police dismantled a major telecom gambling fraud ring consisting of 120 Taiwanese members—the largest single-nation criminal group ever busted.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed today (July 23) that Greek police on the 21st dismantled a large-scale telecom gambling fraud ring with approximately 130 arrests. Besides three Greek nationals, over 120 of the arrested were Taiwanese. The Foreign Ministry has instructed its Representative Office in Greece to work closely with Greek police to confirm the suspects’ identities.
🗣️ Justice Ministry Admits: Taiwan is Source of Fraud Rings
Regarding this cross-border telecom fraud case putting Taiwan in international headlines, then-Justice Minister Lo Ying-hsue stated: “I find this truly shameful and deeply our responsibility. Taiwan has become the source of fraud rings,” causing international harm.
Addressing the expansion of fraud rings internationally, she emphasized that Taiwan’s methods and resources for combating fraud should be exported abroad, “so that fewer people in other countries become victims and awareness increases.”
The Justice Minister stated: “She feels especially troubled that fraud rings exploit human goodness and mutual trust, using people’s kind nature to harm others. She believes the fundamental solution must start with education, preventing our citizens from embarking on this path.”
⚖️ Malaysia Case and Jurisdiction Disputes
The Legislative Yuan held morning hearings with the Justice Ministry, Foreign Ministry, and Mainland Affairs Council regarding Malaysia’s extradition of Taiwanese fraud suspects to China. However, only Lo Ying-hsue appeared; other agencies sent administrative officials. Lo made these statements while responding to questions from KMT legislator Hsu Shu-hua.
Hsu asked whether Taiwan’s 32 nationals extradited by Malaysia to mainland China constituted violation of our jurisdiction or compliance with the cross-strait crime cooperation agreement.
Lo explained that she had clarified that sovereignty and jurisdiction are different. “Sovereignty doesn’t have conflicts, but jurisdiction does.” She noted that the mainland’s position was they didn’t want to separate these 32 people from other suspects during investigation, as this would improve investigation efficiency.
She noted that the 20 people returned to Taiwan were from the third criminal group, while these 32 are from the first, second, and fourth groups, meaning they are investigating different cases. If the previous 20 were already separated from mainland suspects during investigation, naturally we hope to conduct joint investigations following the cooperation principle and handle the cases well.
Lo continued that the other three groups (32 people), “the mainland has its position, which we don’t entirely accept, which is why we want to negotiate,” but the cross-strait crime-fighting and judicial cooperation agreements lack clear detail on these matters. “The only common objective is to cooperate in combating crime.”
📰 International Opinion and Taiwan’s Dilemma
Hsu then asked: “We seem confused. Do we discuss territorial principle or personal principle? Including Taiwan this time, the Executive Yuan protested—are we protesting Malaysia while cooperating with mainland? Is this two separate mechanisms?”
Lo responded that the Foreign Ministry and Mainland Affairs Council had their perspectives in their protests, “but the Justice Ministry’s focus is joint crime-fighting,” so the primary discussion should be how to maximize investigation efficiency.
Hsu then added, “In fact, these seven years of joint crime-fighting have been quite effective, arresting over 8,700 suspects.”
Hsu further asked, “Minister, did you know Taiwan’s telecom fraud cases appeared in America’s Time magazine?” Lo answered, “I heard about it.”
Hsu continued, “They specifically noted that these people often face no conviction or light sentences in Taiwan, so Beijing decided to handle it themselves. The article also mentioned that similar cases have made Taiwan a ‘haven for harboring criminals,’ causing deep shame to the Taiwanese people… How exactly do we handle these fraud perpetrators? How will we address this in the future to show other nations Taiwan’s attitude toward criminal handling?”
Lo reiterated that Taiwan being the source of fraud rings is shameful and stressed that fraud rings, capitalizing on mature domestic awareness, have expanded internationally with improved techniques, causing “international harm,” so crime-fighting resources should be exported abroad. She also noted that fraud damages trust between people, and while resources are needed, the fundamental solution remains education.
❓ Miao Po-ya Questions: Officials Echoing ‘Fraud Haven’ Narrative
Activist Miao Po-ya, also present at the hearing, subsequently posted on Facebook stating that among the 20 suspects returned, 18 were detained and 2 restricted from leaving. She expressed concern: “I regret that some people sensationalized how suspects weren’t immediately detained upon arrival, claimed ‘Taiwan is a fraud haven,’ stirred up public discontent and panic. After detention, they fell silent.”
“Until now, legislators are still saying in Congress that the general impression is: sent to China and immediately jailed, sent to Taiwan and released altogether,” she stated. Regarding both Kenya and Malaysia cases, suspects included both Taiwanese and Chinese nationals. “Before even identifying the main suspects, Taiwan officials keep echoing mainland’s narrative that ‘Taiwan is a fraud haven, an exporter of fraud, where fraud goes unpunished.’”
Miao Po-ya questioned, “Why do certain politicians and officials cooperate in creating the impression that ‘Taiwan is a fraud haven, an exporter of fraud, where fraud isn’t punished’—I’m not entirely clear. I only know that the more panicked citizens feel about public safety and the more ‘chaotic’ society seems, the easier it is to govern.”