TAIPEI, Taiwan — The suspect involved in the commuter train explosion that injured 25 people on Thursday night is suspected of considering injecting poison into consumer drinks to trigger public panic, an investigation task force said on Saturday.
Investigators found that the 55-year-old male suspect, Lin Ying-chang – among the 25 victims wounded after Thursday night’s blast – allegedly borrowed NT$500 (S$21) from the boss of a breakfast stand in Nantou County, Central Taiwan, and then purchased a bottle of Paraquat, a highly toxic weed killer, before heading north to Taipei on a commuter train.
Investigators originally thought Lin intended to commit suicide by drinking the toxic herbicide after perpetrating the criminal act of detonating an explosive device on the commuter train approaching the Taipei Songshan railway station.
Reuters, The China Post/ANN, AFP
Possible Attempt to Inject Poison into Drinks
But investigators also found that evidence seized by the police included a small sharp utensil that can pierce a container and inject liquid into the container, and therefore became suspicious that Lin possibly had planned to inject toxic herbicide into consumer drinks to cause public panic, just as had been done in the past by a “consumer terrorist” in Japan.
Lin remains in critical situation and in intensive care, and therefore cannot be questioned to find out the motives behind the explosion that rocked commuter Train No. 1258’s sixth carriage on Thursday night, July 7, two minutes before it was due to arrive at Songshan Station.
Investigations also suggested that his past divorce and existing health conditions had been factors that led him to perpetrate the crime.
Lin was married at the age of 20 and divorced his wife after having a child two years later, according to investigators.
Over 60 Treatments for Mental Illnesses and Cancer
Lin has been treated for mental illnesses and tonsil cancer, and has suffered financial troubles in recent years. Investigators found hospital records of over 60 separate treatments for mental illnesses and cancer since he was confirmed as having tonsil cancer in his early 30s.
Lin, who is from Hualien, had reportedly faced financial difficulties in recent years and had been living in his van with his dog. Police later located his van, which the suspect is thought to have abandoned in the mountainous area of Nantou County before taking a bus and then a train to Taipei.
They also found a note in Lin’s van that he left behind for his family members, telling them to repay his debts and arrange his funeral.
Lin also asked his son to give him money, given his “bad financial conditions.”
On another front, Interior Minister Yeh Jiunn-rong seems to have passed a preliminary ordeal for him after assuming office on May 20 under the administration of President Tsai Ing-wen, as the suspect implicated in the train blast incident was identified within 24 hours of the incident.
Immediately after learning of the explosion, the National Police Agency under the Ministry of the Interior stepped in to take effective action to cordon off the scene, rescue the wounded, collect evidence and form an investigation task force, eventually confirming Lin as the sole suspect in the case without any accomplice.
