A Taiwanese woman surnamed Jing was murdered in Lake Kawaguchi, Japan. Her husband surnamed Li, who was suspected of killing his wife and committing bail fraud, has been detained in Taiwan. However, the suspected perpetrator surnamed Yang and key evidence from the murder scene are still in Japan. Subsequent evidence must be obtained through mutual legal assistance. Although Taiwan and Japan currently have a memorandum of understanding on judicial exchanges and cooperation, they do not yet have a complete criminal judicial mutual assistance agreement. In principle, formal requests must be submitted through diplomatic channels. It is still difficult to predict when the information will be obtained.
The Ministry of Justice explained that the South Korean prosecutors must prepare a formal request for mutual legal assistance based on investigation needs, send a letter to the International and Cross-Strait Legal Department of the Ministry of Justice, and then the Ministry of Justice submit it to Japan through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As for how long it will take to obtain the information after making a request, it depends on the individual case. The time cannot be determined and may take a long time.
The body of a 38-year-old girl was found in a hotel in Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan on the 19th of this month. The Japanese police arrested a Taiwanese woman named Yang who was in the same group. After receiving a request from the Criminal Bureau on the 22nd, the Nanjing Prosecutor's Office conducted separate investigations and investigated Li Nan's suspicion of having a false marriage with Jing Nv, encouraging her to travel to Japan, and purchasing high-cost insurance for her before the trip.
On the evening of the 24th, the task force arrested and charged 29-year-old Li Nan when he returned to Taiwan from Japan. They searched 7 places including his residence on the 24th and 25th, and arrested and summoned a total of 7 defendants and witnesses. After interrogation, the prosecutor believed that Li was suspected of causing civil servants to publish false information, co-murdering, and attempted fraud, and was in danger of fleeing and destroying evidence. He applied for detention and was approved on the 26th.
Although Mr. Li is in custody in Taiwan, the suspected perpetrator, Ms. Yang, is being investigated by Japan. The murder scene investigation, forensics, and relevant confessions are also involved in the Japanese investigation. Taiwan prosecutors are investigating marriage, insurance, and suspected conspiracy. Subsequent cross-references with evidence obtained by the Japanese side are still needed to further clarify the criminal connection and division of labor between the two.
The memorandum of exchange and cooperation in the legal and judicial fields signed by Taiwan and Japan in 2023 mainly promotes cooperation through the exchange of regulatory and institutional information, professional knowledge and public information, as well as convening meetings, research visits, etc. It is not a complete criminal judicial mutual assistance agreement. When it comes to evidence collection in individual cases, specific requests must still be made, which will be handled by Japan in accordance with its laws and procedures.
In accordance with the "International Criminal Mutual Legal Assistance Act", when our country requests assistance from a foreign country, it must attach a request letter and related documents that meet the requirements of the other party. In principle, the Ministry of Justice will forward the request to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for submission; if there are urgent or special circumstances, there is also a procedure for making a request directly. Matters for which assistance may be requested include obtaining evidence, search and seizure, etc.
The problem faced by the cross-border investigation of this case is that the two places have separate access to the personnel and evidence involved. After a formal request is made, it still has to wait for Japan to process it, and the timetable for obtaining the information cannot be controlled unilaterally by Taiwan. However, it cannot yet be concluded based on this that Japan has refused to assist or that the evidence collection process has been delayed.
The Ministry of Justice responded that it has not yet received a formal request for mutual judicial assistance from the Southern Prosecutor's Office. If necessary, it will handle it in accordance with the law, and will maintain contact with Japanese law enforcement agencies through legal secretaries and police secretaries abroad.
