Taiwan company boss jailed after robbing gas station to pay staff

台灣公司的老闆在搶劫加油站後被判入獄

Judges take pity on man who ran failing cleaning company in Taoyuan and hand down reduced sentence


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A man running a cleaning business in Taoyuan, Taiwan, is to receive a reduced prison sentence of three years and six months for a gas station robbery, after judges learned he committed the crime to pay his employees.

The man, surnamed Lee (李), offered professional cleaning services to restaurants in Taoyuan. His employees had not been paid for several months as the company had practically gone bankrupt due to poor management, local media reported on Wednesday (June 3). The report didn't state the size of his company.

Unable to get funding to sustain operations and pay his employees, Lee resorted to robbing a gas station in Taoyuan. Using a fruit knife, he threatened a gas station worker before taking off on a scooter with NT$25,000 (US$835) in cash.

No one was injured in the incident.

Lee was nabbed just two days later at a train station and immediately confessed his crime to police. Charged with armed robbery, he told the court he was attempting to pay off money owed to his employees and committed the crime as a last resort. He submitted the relevant documents to back up his claim.

The judges reportedly had pity on the man and decided to sentence him to a prison term of three years and six months, citing Act 59 of the country's Criminal Code, which provides exceptions to offenders in exceptional circumstances.

Robbery is considered a serious crime in Taiwan and offenders can receive prison terms of seven years or more.