Post by CCADP on Aug 29, 2005 10:21:57 GMT -5
TAIWAN/CANADA:
B.C. teacher may be facing death penalty----Man, 28, arrested on
trafficking, smuggling counts
A teacher from B.C. is facing the death penalty in Taiwan after being
arrested for allegedly smuggling and trafficking cocaine.
Mathieu Forand, 28, was arrested Friday night and jailed. He was allegedly
found with cocaine, ecstacy and marijuana.
Friends in Taiwan said the lanky, laid-back Canadian teacher was throwing
a party in his home in the Neihu district of Taipei at the time of the
raid, and guests were arrested as well.
Forand may have signed a confession to drug crimes so his visitors won't
be caught up in the prosecution.
"From what I've heard, he's signing things without knowing what they are,
without having them translated," said Forand's father Peter of Port Moody,
who learned of his son's arrest yesterday. "What I've heard is he's done
some of this without legal assistance. That's a problem."
Forand's friends in Taiwan said authorities kept him up for nearly 2 days
while trying to get him to sign documents in Chinese.
Taiwan is 1 of 58 countries worldwide that impose capital punishment, and
drug crimes are subject to the death penalty.
In January, Taiwan's parliament ratified a criminal code overhaul that
will phase out capital punishment.
Taiwan executed 3 people last year, down from 32 in 1998 and 24 in 1999,
according to Hands Off Cain, a group opposed to the death penalty.
Friends of Forand told The Province that the prosecution is pushing for
the death penalty or 25 years in prison, and that Forand's lawyer is
arguing for a sentence of 10 to 15 years.
The Taipei Times said Taiwan Coast Guard agents spotted a
Taiwanese-American man leaving a building, allegedly after buying drugs,
then used the man as bait to snare Forand.
Friends said Forand was reportedly caught with one to five kilograms of
cocaine.
Authorities allege he was the kingpin of a ring that smuggled drugs into
Taiwan inside textbooks and sold them in pubs, nightclubs and over the
Internet to foreign and Taiwanese students, the Taipei Times said.
His friends said they thought it unlikely Forand would have been involved
in smuggling.
Cocaine commands a much higher price in Taiwan than in B.C., a friend of
Forand's said.
Forand has been teaching English in Taiwan for several years. His arrest
shocked his parents.
"It's out of character," his father said. "I don't know what he was
thinking, or why he wasn't thinking."
A friend who also taught English in Taiwan said the case has already
gained a high profile in the media.
It will likely become a flashpoint for racial tensions, with outraged
Taiwanese calling for severe punishment.
A Canada Foreign Affairs spokesman said his department was aware of
Forand's arrest. Forand's father contacted Foreign Affairs yesterday but
was denied information. "Because of privacy legislation they can't tell me
anything until they get clearance from [Forand]," he said.
(source: Vancouver Sun)
B.C. teacher may be facing death penalty----Man, 28, arrested on
trafficking, smuggling counts
A teacher from B.C. is facing the death penalty in Taiwan after being
arrested for allegedly smuggling and trafficking cocaine.
Mathieu Forand, 28, was arrested Friday night and jailed. He was allegedly
found with cocaine, ecstacy and marijuana.
Friends in Taiwan said the lanky, laid-back Canadian teacher was throwing
a party in his home in the Neihu district of Taipei at the time of the
raid, and guests were arrested as well.
Forand may have signed a confession to drug crimes so his visitors won't
be caught up in the prosecution.
"From what I've heard, he's signing things without knowing what they are,
without having them translated," said Forand's father Peter of Port Moody,
who learned of his son's arrest yesterday. "What I've heard is he's done
some of this without legal assistance. That's a problem."
Forand's friends in Taiwan said authorities kept him up for nearly 2 days
while trying to get him to sign documents in Chinese.
Taiwan is 1 of 58 countries worldwide that impose capital punishment, and
drug crimes are subject to the death penalty.
In January, Taiwan's parliament ratified a criminal code overhaul that
will phase out capital punishment.
Taiwan executed 3 people last year, down from 32 in 1998 and 24 in 1999,
according to Hands Off Cain, a group opposed to the death penalty.
Friends of Forand told The Province that the prosecution is pushing for
the death penalty or 25 years in prison, and that Forand's lawyer is
arguing for a sentence of 10 to 15 years.
The Taipei Times said Taiwan Coast Guard agents spotted a
Taiwanese-American man leaving a building, allegedly after buying drugs,
then used the man as bait to snare Forand.
Friends said Forand was reportedly caught with one to five kilograms of
cocaine.
Authorities allege he was the kingpin of a ring that smuggled drugs into
Taiwan inside textbooks and sold them in pubs, nightclubs and over the
Internet to foreign and Taiwanese students, the Taipei Times said.
His friends said they thought it unlikely Forand would have been involved
in smuggling.
Cocaine commands a much higher price in Taiwan than in B.C., a friend of
Forand's said.
Forand has been teaching English in Taiwan for several years. His arrest
shocked his parents.
"It's out of character," his father said. "I don't know what he was
thinking, or why he wasn't thinking."
A friend who also taught English in Taiwan said the case has already
gained a high profile in the media.
It will likely become a flashpoint for racial tensions, with outraged
Taiwanese calling for severe punishment.
A Canada Foreign Affairs spokesman said his department was aware of
Forand's arrest. Forand's father contacted Foreign Affairs yesterday but
was denied information. "Because of privacy legislation they can't tell me
anything until they get clearance from [Forand]," he said.
(source: Vancouver Sun)