Former Kaohsiung detective captain investigated for stalking, filming rival, and false accusations

A retired former Kaohsiung detective captain has been indicted for illegally collecting personal information and making false accusations. The former captain, surnamed Hu, was reportedly unhappy about the interactions between another precinct's detective captain, surnamed Zhang, and a woman surnamed Sun. While still in office, Hu allegedly used his authority to access surveillance footage to secretly film the two and falsely accused Zhang of meeting the woman during work hours. The Kaohsiung District Prosecutor's Office has indicted Hu on charges including violations of the Personal Information Protection Act.

According to the indictment from the Kaohsiung District Prosecutor's Office, the 60-year-old Hu served as a detective captain at a Kaohsiung City Police Department precinct from September 2023 to March 2024. Dissatisfied with the interactions between Zhang, a detective captain from another precinct, and a woman surnamed Sun, Hu allegedly abused his official powers to illegally collect personal information during his tenure.

Prosecutors found that on the evening of December 17, 2023, Hu went to a hotel on Jianguo 3rd Road in Sanmin District. He presented his police ID and falsely told hotel staff that he was "investigating a fraud case and urgently needed to review surveillance footage." Hu requested to view the surveillance footage. From the footage, Hu observed that Zhang and Sun had only walked past the hotel entrance together and had not entered. Nevertheless, he demanded that the hotel staff provide screenshots, which he then photographed and copied, illegally collecting their personal information.

Furthermore, on the evening of January 4, 2024, Hu took photos of Sun arriving at Zhang's residence. He then personally, and through unknown friends using the aliases "Mr. Lin" and "Mr. Chen," made three consecutive calls to the emergency number 110. He demanded that the police immediately investigate Zhang for dating the woman at his residence during work hours. He even threatened to leak the photos to the media if the matter was not handled.

Subsequently, Hu, despite knowing that Zhang had not been resting with Sun at the hotel and had not defrauded overtime pay, sent a complaint letter to the Kaohsiung City Police Bureau's Inspectorate and the Director's Office under the name "Bao Liao Gong She" (a popular online forum). He attached the secretly taken photos and fabricated false accusations, such as Zhang "publicly going to a hotel room," which led to Zhang being investigated by the Inspectorate.

During the investigation by the Kaohsiung District Prosecutor's Office, Hu vehemently denied the charges. He claimed that he had accessed the surveillance footage to assist in an investigation of a fraud suspect and happened to see the two at the hotel entrance, which is why he took photos. He also stated that his complaint to the Inspectorate was to clarify whether Zhang had been slacking off during work hours, thus serving the public interest and not intending to make false accusations.

However, after summoning Zhang, Sun, and relevant witnesses and comparing the evidence, prosecutors determined that Hu's statements were self-serving and lacked credibility. Considering Hu's alleged offenses of a public servant illegally using personal information under the guise of official duties and the crime of false accusation under the Penal Code, he has been indicted accordingly. (Editor: Chang Ming-kun) 2024/06/23

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