Published: 2026/4/15 19:40 Updated: 2026/4/15 20:59 Chen Huanyu, Chen Xiankun, Wen Zhengheng, Zhan Shuyun / Comprehensive Report
Lawyer You Guangde, suspected of colluding with bank employees to defraud NT$110 million, on March 22nd, with the assistance of a smuggler and a boatman, assisted in breaking an electronic bracelet. He then traveled from the Zengwen River estuary in Tainan to the waters off Penghu by fishing boat, and was subsequently picked up by an unidentified vessel to flee the country.
Prosecutors and the Coast Guard recently tracked down the three accomplices and seized the fishing boat moored at Anping Fishing Port. The three accomplices have been detained and held incommunicado.
Coast Guard personnel boarded the vessel and searched the area. Lawyer Yu Guangde, suspected of colluding with bank employees to form a fraud ring and embezzling NT$110 million, fled on bail on March 22nd, transported by a fishing boat from the Tainan coast.
Taoyuan District Prosecutors Office Chief Prosecutor Huang Rongde stated, “We have apprehended three accomplices who assisted Yu in his smuggling, and their detention has been approved by the court. The vessel used to assist Yu in his smuggling has also been seized.”
After being released on bail in 2024, Yu Guangde was monitored with an electronic bracelet; however, he paid smugglers surnamed Chen and Wu, and a boatman surnamed Guo to tamper with the bracelet and escape.
Prosecutors traced Yu Guangde’s journey from the Zengwen River estuary in Tainan to the waters off Penghu, where he was picked up by an unidentified vessel. Following this lead, they apprehended the three accomplices, including Chen, and located the fishing boat anchored at Anping Fishing Port. In response, Yu Kuang-te’s father issued an apology statement on the 15th and appealed to the prosecutor’s office to treat the matter fairly and carefully.
Wang Chun-yong, chairman of the Penghu Offshore Fisheries Development Association, stated, “That’s why Penghu has such a bad reputation now. Everything is associated with Penghu, everything is associated with fishermen. Let’s see if the relevant authorities can deter this.”
Penghu Coast Guard personnel, accompanied by search dogs, inspected vehicles boarding the ship. Yu Kuang-te fled from the waters off Penghu. In the past, suspects in the Sanlian Group fraud case, such as Hsu Shao-tung, have used Penghu as a transit point for their escapes, severely damaging Penghu’s reputation. The prosecutor’s office, in cooperation with the Coast Guard and other agencies, has strengthened patrols at entry and exit points.
Penghu District Prosecutors Office Chief Prosecutor Wu Yi-ming stated, “We are implementing security checks at all ports, increasing police visibility, and consulting with the Coast Guard. If we find any abnormalities in vessel routes, we will strengthen related interception and security checks. We will also request the Coast Guard to increase random inspections in the maritime patrol area.”
Wang Po-Chi, Associate Professor of the Department of Criminal Justice at Ming Chuan University, believes, “We could try a rolling amendment. If the smugglers or ship owners are Taiwanese and feel the penalties are not severe enough, they might act with impunity, getting out in a few years and being fine again, or finding someone to take the blame. I think we could try increasing the penalties to create a deterrent effect.”
To curb the smuggling of people, the Immigration Act was amended in 2024, increasing the sentence from under three years to one to seven years. However, some criminals continue to assist in smuggling. In addition to raising penalties when appropriate, scholars believe that the government should also review and strengthen institutional issues such as escape prevention mechanisms in order to reduce the possibility of escape through multiple measures.