Breaking | Taiwanese police identify bomb blast suspect
Lin Ying-chang, 55, was critically injured in the explosion, authorities say, as they continue to search for motive
Taiwanese authorities on Friday identified a 55-year-old man as the suspect behind a blast which wounded 25 people, including himself, on a commuter train the previous night.
Lin Ying-chang, who was critically injured in the explosion, was allegedly carrying a steel pipe containing explosive powder in the train compartment, police said.
The criminal investigation bureau chief said they were “pretty sure” Lin was the bomber after reviewing surveillance camera footages, DNA samples and tools and raw materials for the explosive device found in Lin’s van, United Daily News report.
“According to a fingerprint found on a rectangular red backpack left in a train toilet along with a DNA sample we collected there, we believe one of the passengers injured in the blast could be the suspect,” said an officer investigating earlier. Police also found a suspected suicide note in the van, Central News Agency reported.
Five others were critically injured, doctors said.
Police said Lin was still recovering and was not ready for questioning. He sustained injuries to his chest, which led authorities to believe he might have been holding the pipe when it exploded. The pipe was wrapped in cloth.
“We are still investigating the suspect’s motive,” the officer said.
Asked whether the explosive detonated accidentally or was deliberately set off, the officer said police were still investigating. The blast occurred as the train was travelling from Hsinchu to the northern city of Keelung at about 10pm on Thursday.
“The train was approaching Songshan station ... when the blast took place,” Wang Pao-chang, a police spokesman, told a news conference in Taipei. The pipe was 47cm long and 6cm thick. It exploded into two parts, injuring passengers and punching a hole in the train compartment roof. One part was found on the track, while the other was in the compartment, police said.
A 50-year-old woman, whose right hand was injured in the blast, told the United Daily News: “I saw a bag on fire when the train was approaching Songshan station and in no time the explosion occurred, blasting the train ceiling.”
Panicked passengers ran off the train when it stopped at Songshan station, with many shouting for help, according to local television reports.
Chen Kuo-en, the director general of the National Police Agency, earlier said the blast was not the work of terrorists. “We are stepping up security measures on all of our transport networks, including airports, seaports, highways and other means of transport,” Chen said.
Premier Lin Chuan has ordered an investigation into the blast, which he described as a deliberate act of malice.
