New Taipei City Police Department Criminal Investigation Division Released Search Footage Violating Non-Publicity of Investigation—Review and Public Explanation Are Required to Prevent Recurrence of "Blatant Public Investigation"

Regarding the virtual currency scam case investigated by the Criminal Investigation Corps of the New Taipei City Police Department (hereinafter referred to as the New Taipei City Criminal Investigation Corps) on January 24, 2024, in which search footage was published on the Facebook page "New Taipei Criminal Investigation Corps" in violation of the principle of non-publicity of investigation, our Foundation issues the following statement:

1. The publication of search footage and photos of key evidence on Facebook by the New Taipei City Criminal Investigation Corps clearly violates Article 9 of the Directions on the Non-Publicity of Investigation and raises concerns of breaching the principle of non-publicity of investigation:

The Directions on the Non-Publicity of Investigation explicitly stipulate the scope of matters that must never be made public during an ongoing investigation as well as the procedures for exceptional disclosure. Article 9, Paragraph 1, Subparagraphs 2 and 6 provide: "Except as otherwise provided by law, the matters concerning cases that may be appropriately disclosed or revealed under the preceding article shall not be made public or revealed: ... 2. Investigative methods or plans that have not yet been applied for or implemented, or that should continue to be implemented, such as arrest, detention, search, seizure, restriction on exit, financial asset investigation, and communication surveillance... 6. Case files, transcripts, audio-visual materials, photographs, electromagnetic records, or other important documents and items under investigation." Furthermore, Paragraph 2 of the same article states: "Where the audio-visual materials, photographs, or items referred to in Subparagraph 6 of the preceding paragraph fall under the circumstances of Subparagraph 1 or Subparagraph 7 of the preceding article and there is a necessity for special explanation or clarification, they may be appropriately disclosed after reasons are stated in writing, approved by the head of the agency, and processed with de-identification. However, in order to uphold major public interests, de-identification may be waived."

According to media reports, the New Taipei City Criminal Investigation Corps, while investigating the ACE Exchange virtual currency scam case, teamed up with the Taipei City Investigation Division of the Investigation Bureau, and the Chiaochi and Suao Precincts of the Yilan County Police Bureau on January 24, 2024, to conduct searches at 10 locations in Taipei, New Taipei, and Yilan. At 4:29 p.m. that same day, they surprisingly posted on the Facebook page "New Taipei Criminal Investigation Corps" to announce the amount of cash seized and the number of suspects apprehended, attaching 10 photos and 7 videos of the search scene. Among them, the photos displayed the suspects' residences and the cash at the search scene, while the videos included footage of suspects being pinned to the ground, cash-counting processes, and the transport of evidence, without any de-identification processing whatsoever. This obviously exceeded the scope of enabling the public to "appropriately" understand the "investigative progress" of the case. Subsequently, various media outlets reposted the content, causing the investigative photos and footage to circulate widely and rendering the principle of non-publicity of investigation and its operational guidelines a dead letter.

This act of "blatant public investigation," in addition to violating the provisions of the aforementioned guidelines and constituting unlawful conduct, may also compromise the subsequent investigation of the case due to the improper disclosure of investigative information.

Note: To prevent the continued circulation of the footage and photos, backup files of the original footage and photos are not attached to this statement.

2. Although the New Taipei City Criminal Investigation Corps has deleted some of the photos and footage, media circulation has already been caused. The Corps should still explain and review the standard operating procedures and accountability for assessing the necessity of publishing investigative photos and footage this time, so as to prevent the recurrence of "blatant public investigation":

The non-publicity of investigation is a vital principle in criminal proceedings. Its core purpose is to prevent cases from being subjected to media reports before detailed investigations are conducted, which would interfere with a fair judicial trial, thereby implementing the presumption of innocence and safeguarding the people's right to a fair trial. The act of the New Taipei City Criminal Investigation Corps in recording the investigative process through videos and photos and uploading them to a Facebook fan page not only infringes upon the suspects' privacy and reputation but also severely contravenes the principles of presumption of innocence and fair trial.

Although the New Taipei City Criminal Investigation Corps deleted some photos and videos last night (the 25th) following public protests in the comments, the infringement caused has already become irreversible. Our Foundation hereby calls upon the New Taipei City Criminal Investigation Corps—apart from faithfully investigating cases and complying with the Directions on the Non-Publicity of Investigation—to explain and review the standard operating procedures and accountability for assessing the necessity of publishing investigative photos and footage this time, in order to prevent the recurrence of "blatant public investigation." Our Foundation also calls upon news media outlets, based on the principle of media self-regulation, to immediately take down the investigative videos and photos related to this case.

Contact Person

Legal Specialist Ch'en Kuan-chen
Telephone: 02-252311785 ext. 21