Arrests in feces-dumping case as probe continues

Three more men have been detained by Taiwan police in connection to a case where feces were dumped at a Taipei restaurant which hires Hongkongers in exile.

This came after Taiwan police arrested 25-year-old Mo Fan, who allegedly splashed a bucket of chicken feces at the diner, Aegis.

Mo was allegedly talked by the three suspects - brothers Li Zhaoqing, 24, and Li Zhaoxin, 26, and their cousin Jiang Qirong, 25 - into committing the crime.

The three were arrested Saturday night.

The four men could be charged with assault, intimidation, public insult, property damage, and related charges, police said.

Police have found that the main suspect, Li Zhaoqing, was offered NT$30,000 (HK$8,087) by an unidentified person to carry out the crime and conspired with his older brother and cousin Jiang.

The trio then asked Mo, a former high school classmate of Jiang, to commit the crime for NT$15,000 (HK$4,044).

The four suspects refused to disclose the identity of the mastermind who hired them. The police investigation is ongoing.

The restaurant provides employment - a way for foreigners to legally stay in Taiwan - for Hong Kong protesters and others seeking refuge on the island after last year's anti-fugitive bill protests in the SAR.