MOFA confirms 47 Taiwanese fraud suspects held in Madrid

The government has confirmed that 47 Taiwan nationals were recently arrested in Madrid on charges of telecoms fraud and said it would seek their repatriation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Tuesday.

An unspecified number of Taiwanese out of a total of 279 suspects have been detained in Spain for their involvement in telecoms fraud, according to a recent report in Spanish newspaper, El Pais.

In response to the report, Vice Minister of Justice Chen Ming-tang (???) said Monday that Taiwan citizens were arrested in the country but declined to make public the total number until the ministry is able to verify their identities.

Spanish police last week raided more than 10 locations in Madrid, Barcelona and Alicante and arrested over 200 Chinese and Taiwanese on suspicion of telecoms fraud, MOFA said Tuesday, adding that Madrid police confirmed 47 Taiwan citizens were arrested in the capital city.

Officials from Taiwan's representative office in Madrid have visited those arrested, according to MOFA.

Asked whether the Taiwan citizens will be deported to mainland China along with the Chinese nationals, MOFA said it has directed Taiwan's representative office to ask that the Spanish government send the Taiwanese detainees back to Taiwan based on the principle of nationality.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel