Published: 2026/2/15 12:09 Updated: 2026/2/15 13:11
Chen Guanxun, Jiang Longxiang / Comprehensive Report
The number of Taiwanese race car drivers arrested in various countries has increased significantly. According to statistics from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the number of Taiwanese arrested in Japan surged from 4 in 2023, 5 in 2024, to 50 in 2025. At least 20 were arrested in the United States and 16 in Singapore last year. Police analysis suggests that fraud groups attract young people by offering work-study opportunities, using visa-free entry and the role of “flash mob” race car drivers. However, scholars also analyze that the actual number involved is likely higher, with a possible hidden count.
Before the iron gate closed, a man rushed to the bank to withdraw money. The elderly gentleman at the counter was withdrawing a large sum, but his explanations were inconsistent, prompting the bank employee to immediately report him. Which air conditioner could possibly cost 1 million? After continued police intervention, the elderly man finally lowered his guard.
Zhong Jiachen, deputy chief of the Jianguo Police Station, Zhongshan Precinct, Taipei City, stated, “Li Min admitted that he was introduced to stock investment by someone else and was preparing to withdraw cash to invest.”
Police are preventing fraud at the back end and simultaneously investigating the source, but they have now discovered that the fraud ring has extended its reach to countries around the world, even sending Taiwanese accomplices overseas to collect the money.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the number of Taiwanese citizens arrested in Japan surged from 4 in 2023 and 5 the year before, to 50 last year; arrests in the United States and Singapore also saw at least 20 and 16 arrests respectively last year.
Li Kun-da, head of the International Affairs Division of the Criminal Investigation Bureau, pointed out, “He uses visa-free entry to handle the money and then leaves, making short trips in and out. Therefore, the risk to these fraud groups is very low. We feel that there has been an increasing trend of cross-border fraud group cooperation in the past year.”
Not only are Taiwanese accomplices committing crimes in various countries, but the number of foreign accomplices arrested in Taiwan is also on the rise. Police analysis suggests that a major recruitment tactic of fraud groups is to attract Taiwanese citizens to join as “flash mob” accomplices by offering part-time work combined with travel and the promise of earning money while having fun.
Wang Po-Chi, associate professor of the Department of Criminal Justice at Ming Chuan University, believes, “Under such incentives, I have found that some young people may fall victim to these scams. Of course, this is what we have uncovered. Are there any undetected cases? I believe there definitely are. It’s an old reminder: there’s no such thing as a free lunch.”
With fraud rampant worldwide, and the rise in Taiwanese accomplices in this type of transnational crime, how to effectively combat it tests the intelligence exchange and international cooperation of law enforcement agencies.