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進入《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》Taipei court hands train bomber 30 years
Lin Ying-chang, left, who set off an explosion in a commuter train in Taipei last year, is escorted by a police officer in an undated photograph. Photo: Wen Yu-te, Taipei Times
SMALL BANG: Lin claimed he only wanted to commit suicide and did not plan to harm others, and the small amount of explosives did not cause significant damage
By Jason Pan / Staff reporter
The Taipei District Court yesterday sentenced Lin Ying-chang （林英昌） to 30 years in jail for attempted murder and illegal use of explosives by detonating a pipe bomb inside a commuter train in Taipei.
Lin on July 7 set off a homemade pipe bomb inside a train near Songshan Railway Station, injuring 25 people, including himself.
Judges handed down a 20-year term for the attempted murder charges and added a 10-and-a-half-year sentence for manufacturing an explosive device, a violation of the Controlling Guns, Ammunition and Knives Act （槍砲彈藥刀械管制條例）.
Initial reports of the incident sparked public fear of a terrorist attack, as bomb attacks targeting public transportation systems are rare in Taiwan.
Immediately after the incident, authorities swiftly combed through evidence and examined surveillance footage, from which they identified Lin as the lone suspect.
Investigators later found that 56-year-old Lin has a history of mental illness and cancer, and was estranged from his family.
During his trial, Lin defended his actions and requested leniency, saying he only wanted to commit suicide and did not intend to harm others.
The small quantity of explosives he used was not enough to damage the train carriage, he said.
However, lawyers representing the Taiwan Railways Administration told the court that Lin’s actions caused extensive damage to the train carriage, and left the public with the perception that the company was unsafe and had lax security, which led to a drop in passenger volumes in the following weeks.
Initially, the rail operator did not know Lin was the culprit and helped pay for his medical expenses — as it did for all injured passengers — which is why it filed a separate civil lawsuit against him seeking compensation, the lawyers said.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
